RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A 
RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 


•The 


THE  MACMILLAN  CO 

NKW  YORK  •    BOSTON  •    CHICA 
ATLANTA   •    SAN   FRAN 

MACMILLAN  &  CO., 

LONDON   •    BOMBAY   •    CJ 
MELBOURNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.  OF 

TORONTO 


1-1 

I— I 

& 

a 

Q 

N 
U 

w 

a 


RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A 
RUSSIAN    DIPLOMAT 

THE  SUICIDE  OF  MONARCHIES 

(WILLIAM  II  AND  NICHOLAS  II) 


BY 

EUGENE  de  SCHELKING 

Formerly  Secretary  of  the  Russian  Embassy  in  Berlin 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 
1918 

AU  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  1918 
By  THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 


Set  up  and  electrotyped.    Published  October,  1918. 


.  ■ 

* •       •  • 


,s. 


•   ••"..•  •  •    ,.      .'•...••     •  . 

■       • •    •    •  • .       •  . . ,    .      •  •  i*  .  •  •  • 


PREFACE 

The  preparation  of  Mr.  de  Schelking's  manuscript 
for  publication  has  been  an  interesting,  if  somewhat 
arduous  task.  When  I  was  able  to  secure  the  manu- 
script from  the  hands  of  the  censor,  in  Ottawa,  I 
discovered  that  what  Mr.  de  Schelking  had  meant  and 
what  the  translation  said  were  two  different  things, 
owing  not  to  the  fault  of  the  translator  but  to  the 
extreme  difficulty  of  following  the  trend  of  another 
man's  mind.  In  consequence,  it  was  necessary  to 
rewrite  the  whole  manuscript  and  then  to  go  most 
carefully  through  it  with  the  author,  all  of  which 
took  considerable  time.  But  the  more  familiar  I 
became  with  the  manuscript,  the  more  fascinating 
the  matter  appeared  to  me.  In  fact,  when  the  final 
copies  were  dispatched  to  the  publishers,  I  quite 
regretted  that,  for  the  time  being  at  least,  my  con- 
nection with  the  work  was  over. 

I  think  any  one  who  reads  the  book  will  agree  with 
me  that  it  is  one  of  the  most  fascinating  human  docu- 
ments which  has  been  published  in  recent  years. 
Through  it  all  there  runs  the  personality  of  the 
author  who  throughout  his  diplomatic  and  journal- 
istic careers,  seems  to  have  had  a  premonition  that 
the  weaknesses  of  the  men  who  by  birth  or  caprice 


21 218 1 


vi  PREFACE 

held  the  destinies  of  the  world  in  their  hands,  would 
bring  about  a  terrible  catastrophe. 

Naturally,  as  a  good  Russian,  Mr.  de  Schelking  was 
not  altogether  in  favour  of  the  Russian  entente  with 
England.  The  greater  part  of  his  diplomatic  ca- 
reer was  evidently  passed  during  the  period  when 
Russia  and  England  were  constantly  clashing  in 
the  East.  It  must  be  admitted  that  in  England  for 
years,  the  instinctive  sentiment  of  the  politicians 
and  public  was  to  regard  Russia  as  an  enemy  just 
as  France  had  been  regarded  as  an  enemy.  Thus 
Russia's  natural  policy  was  to  oppose  England  with 
Germany,  while  remaining  friendly  with  France,  al- 
though even  her  friendship  with  the  latter  seems 
to  have  been  tinged  with  autocratic  regret  for  an 
alliance  with  a  republic. 

Metternich's  idea  of  an  alliance  of  the  three  Em- 
perors of  Austria,  Germany  and  Russia  naturally 
made  its  appeal  to  an  autocratic  government,  but 
Mr.  de  Schelking  evidently  very  soon  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  archaic  anachronism  known  as 
the  House  of  Habsburg,  was  a  pillar  in  this  structure 
which  must  inevitably  crumble  under  the  storms  of 
national  passions. 

The  gradual  federation  of  the  Balkan  nations  in- 
evitably brought  about  the  resurgence  of  Polish, 
Czech,  and  Jugo-Slav  aspirations.  Intensely  Slavic 
in  his  sentiments  and  constitutionally  democratic  in 
his  instincts,  Mr.  de  Schelking  had  no  patience  with 


PREFACE  vii 

the  vacillating  policies  of  the  statesmen  who  refused 
to  face  facts,  but  took  refuge  in  expediencies.  The 
dynastic  interests  of  the  Hohenzollerns,  Habsburgs, 
and  Komanoffs,  sooner  or  later,  would  inevitably 
clash  with  the  progressive  tendencies  of  the  vari- 
ous European  nationalities.  Therefore  like  many 
others,  Mr.  de  Schelking  regarded  the  personal  inter- 
ests of  statesmen,  whose  power  came  through  the 
favour  of  their  rulers,  as  utterly  opposed  to  all  prog- 
ress. He  does  not  hide  his  contempt  for  those  states- 
men who  tried  to  retain  power  at  the  expense 
of  the  interests  of  the  nations  over  which  they  ruled. 

No  man  who  has  a  definite  constructive  policy 
and  who  has  the  gift  of  analysing  the  logical  results 
of  expediency,  can  avoid  arriving  at  Mr.  de  Schelk- 
ing's  conclusion,  when  he  realizes  the  folly  of  these 
men.  Intimately  acquainted  with  the  characters  and 
personalities  of  the  two  principal  actors  in  the  Euro- 
pean drama,  the  Emperors  Nicholas  II  of  Russia,  and 
William  II  of  Germany,  Mr.  de  Schelking  is  ruthless 
in  exposing  their  weaknesses.  In  these  pages,  men 
make  their  entrance  and  their  exit  from  the  Euro- 
pean stage,  not  as  the  historical  characters  they  have 
hitherto  represented  in  the  eyes  of  their  audience, 
but  as  human  beings,  with  all  the  weaknesses  and 
foibles  of  ordinary  every-day  people. 

I  know  no  book  which  gives  a  better  proof  of  the 
value  of  democracy  than  this  one.  Not  because  it 
deals  with  democratic  principles  but  because  it  ex- 


viii  PREFACE 

poses    the   weaknesses    of    autocratic   government. 
One  of  the  most  fascinating  things  about  the  book 
is  the  manner  in  which  the  most  trivial  affairs  be- 
come the  direct  source  of  a  tragic  aftermath. 

L.  W.  Makovski, 
Vancouver,  B.  C. 
June,  1918. 


NOTE  BY  THE  AUTHOR 

It  is  difficult  to  relate  with  any  degree  of  clearness 
those  events  which  culminated  in  the  Russian  Revo- 
lution and  the  great  tragedy  of  the  European  War. 
Hundreds  of  books  have  been  written  about  the  poli- 
cies of  the  various  governments  involved.  History 
has  dealt  with  Germany,  Russia,  France,  Italy  and 
the  Balkan  Powers  and  with  their  relations  to  the 
British  Empire.  Many  of  these  books  have  been 
written  by  men  intimately  connected  with  the  govern- 
ments of  what  has  been  known  as  Continental  Eu- 
rope. They  have  dealt  with  the  dangers  of  militar- 
ism and  from  another  point  of  view,  with  the  so- 
called  danger  of  British  sea  power.  To  the  student 
of  history,  these  books  have  been  admired  but  never- 
theless they  utterly  failed  to  convince  the  world  of 
the  inexorable  outcome  of  these  policies. 

The  tragedy  of  the  European  War  has  been 
ascribed  to  many  different  causes.  It  is,  of  course, 
the  natural  outcome  of  policies  deliberately  pursued, 
but  it  will  be  admitted  that  behind  the  policy  lies  the 
personality  of  the  men  in  w7hose  hands  have  lain 
the  destinies  of  nations.  In  the  following  pages,  I 
have  endeavoured  to  deal  with  many  of  these  per- 
sonalities  as   I   knew   them,   more   especially   with 

ix 


x  NOTE  BY  TIIE  AUTHOR 

those  men  whose  personalities  guided  the  destiny  of 
Russia  and  Germany.  Moreover,  to  thoroughly  un- 
derstand matters  that  may  seem  absolutely  trivial 
but  which  were  of  themselves  much  more  important 
than  the  widely  advertised  and  published  treaties 
with  which  history  deals,  it  is  necessary  to  know 
something  of  the  reign  and  character  of  Alexander 
III,  the  predecessor  of  Nicholas  II,  and  of  Bavaria's 
position  in  the  federation  of  Germany. 

I  have  commenced  my  book,  therefore,  with  a  short 
chapter  reviewing  the  reign  of  Alexander  III.  After 
his  death,  Emperor  William  of  Germany  became  the 
dominating  figure  around  whom  the  whirlpool  swept. 

I  have  given  the  name  of  The  Suicide  of  Monarchies 
to  this  book  because  it  was  the  feebleness  of  Nicholas 

II  which  brought  disaster  to  Russia  and  eliminated 
the  Romanoffs  from  that  throne,  just  as  the  insen- 
sate, egoistical  and  dynastic  policy  of  William  will 
inevitably  eliminate  the  Hohenzollerns  from  among 
the  monarchies  of  Europe,  when  the  people  of  Ger- 
many realize  the  role  he  has  played  in  deliberately 
plotting  the  tragedy. 

The  manuscript  of  this  volume  was  originally  dic- 
tated by  me  in  French  to  Mr.  Lawrence  Mott,  corre- 
spondent of  the  New  York  Herald  in  Yokohama, 
Japan,  where  I,  after  leaving  Petrograd  nineteen 
days  after  the  final  revolution  broke  out,  stayed  for 
about  a  year  before  coming  to  Canada.  The  book 
was  practically  re-written  in  Vancouver,  B.  C,  by 


NOTE  BY  THE  AUTHOR  xi 

me  in  collaboration  with  Mr.  L.  W.  Makovski  of  the 
Vancouver  Daily  Province  whose  knowledge  of  the 
European  situation  which  led  to  the  war,  proved  of 
inestimable  value  to  me,  who  hereby  desire  to  ac- 
knowledge the  assistance  I  received  from  both 
Messrs.  Mott  and  Makovski.  The  latter  placed  the 
manuscript  in  the  hands  of  the  publishers. 

E.   DE   SCHELKING. 


BIOGRAPHY  OF  THE  AUTHOR 

Mr.  E.  de  Schelking  was  born  in  Petrograd  in 
1858.  His  family,  which  belonged  to  the  ancient 
order  of  Teutonic  knights,  migrated  into  Courland 
from  Austria,  and  there  became  Polish  subjects  re- 
ceiving the  title  of  Baron  from  the  King  of  Poland, 
Sigismund  III.  When  Courland,  under  Empress 
Anne,  Duchess  of  Courland,  became  a  Russian  prov- 
ince during  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
Mr.  de  Schelking 's  family  went  to  Petrograd,  re- 
taining the  title  of  Baron  in  Courland  but  not  taking 
out  the  necessary  papers  to  make  the  barony  Russian. 

His  father  was  a  Russian  General — Nicholas 
George  Schelking — who  distinguished  himself  in  the 
Hungarian  Campaign  of  1848  and  in  that  of  Poland 
in  1864.  His  mother  was  a  Baroness  Fersen,  and 
one  of  her  ancestors  accompanied  Louis  XVI  of 
France  and  Queen  Marie  Antoinette  in  their  flight 
from  Varennes. 

Mr.  de  Schelking  finished  his  studies  in  the  Im- 
perial College  of  Law  at  Petrograd  and  entered  the 
Diplomatic  Service  of  his  country  in  1883,  and  has 
held  the  following  Diplomatic  Posts: 

First  Secretary»in  Greece,  France,  Spain  and  Ger- 


xiv  BIOGRAPHY  OF  THE  AUTHOR 

many, — both  in  Berlin  and  Munich — and  he  was  for 
a  time  Legation  Councillor  at  The  Hague. 

Leaving  diplomatic  life  in  1903  he  went  into  po- 
litical journalism,  and  was  correspondent  in  Paris 
for  the  well  known  Liberal  Organ — the  Rouss, 
and  later  for  the  Novoie  Vremya. 

After  that  again  he  was  for  six  years  in  the  For- 
eign Politics  Department  of  the  Birjevia  Wiede- 
mosti — the  largest  of  all  the  papers  in  the  Russian 
capital.  While  in  this  position  he  was  officially 
asked  on  several  occasions  to  undertake  delicate  mis- 
sions for  his  government,  and  in  consequence,  trav- 
elled a  great  deal  in  Europe,  but  more  especially  in 
the  Balkans.  For  a  time  he  was  the  Petrograd  Cor- 
respondent for  the  Paris  newspaper — Le  Temps. 

During  his  actual  diplomatic  career,  Mr.  de 
Schelking  spent  fourteen  years  in  Germany,  with 
Count  Osten-Sacken  as  his  Chief. 

During  the  last  four  or  five  years,  Mr.  de  Schelking 
has  been  a  member  of  practically  all  the  Slavic  So- 
cieties in  Russia,  and  also  a  Member  of  their  Coun- 
cils. He  was  especially  popular  in  the  Slavophilist 
circles,  and  the  representatives  of  the  Czech  peoples 
in  Russia  honoured  him  with  an  Address  of  Thanks 
for  the  work  that  he  did  toward  the  liberation  of  the 
Czechs  from  the  oppression  of  Austria. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAOE 

Preface       v 

Note  by  the  Author ix 

Biography  of  the  Author xiii 

I    Alexander  III 1 

Personal  Life — Politics  Interior  and  Exterior. 
Greatness  of  the  Empire  Beyond  Its  Confines. 

II    Bavaria  and  Prussia  and  William  II     ....     22 
The  Regent,  King  Louis  III.     A  Royal  Tragedy. 
Role  of  Bavaria  in  the  German  Empire. 

III  William  II ^ 

Personal  Impressions.  His  Character,  Qualities 
and  Faults.  Hushand  and  Father,  Kaiser  and 
Politician. 

IV  The  German  Ministers 77 

V    Nicholas  II 103 

His  Character.  The  Ex-Emperor  as  Husband  and 
Father.  The  Empress  and  Her  Influence. 
Rasputin — The  Grand  Dukes. 

'     VI    Foreign  Policy  of  Nicholas  II 128 

Relations  with  William  II  of  Germany. 

VII    The  Arrivistes 151 

Russian  Diplomats  and  the  Foreign  Policy  of  the 
Russian  Empire  During  the  Reign  of  Nicholas  II 

VIII    The  Whirlpool 185 

Sazonoff's  Policy:  Russian  Action  in  the  Balkans. 
Bulgaria,  Serbia  and  Roumania.  Foreign  Influ- 
ence on  Russian  International  Policy. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

IX    The  Fox  of  the  Balkans 218 

Czar  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria. 

X    The  Eve  op  Revolution 226 

The  Last  Foreign  Ministers  of  Nicholas  II — Stur- 
mer,  Pokrowsky,  Vice-Minister  Neratoff— The 
Ambassadors. 

XI    Genesis 249 

The  Origin  of  the  Russian  Revolution — The  Minis- 
ters, the  Clergy,  Absence  of  Justice,  Depriva- 
tions of  Russian  Society.  General  Dissatisfac- 
tion. 

XII    The  Deluge 282 

Appendix   I 307 

Queen  Marie  of  Roumania. 

Appendix  II 315 

The  Result  of  Roumanians  Participation  in  the 
Great  War. 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 
The  Czar  and  His  Family Frontispiece 

FACING 
PAGE 

Count  Witte 12 

Count   Ostcn-Sacken 64 

Prince   Von    Buelow 114 

Herr  Von  Bethmann-Hollweg 164 

M.    Sazonoff 240 


RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A 
RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

CHAPTER  I 

ALEXANDER  III 

Personal  Life  —  Politics  Interior  and  Exterior.     Greatness  of  the 
Empire  beyond  its  Confines 

Emperor  Alexander  II  was  assassinated  on  March 
13th,  1881.  His  son,  Emperor  Alexander  III,  as- 
cended the  throne  under  most  tragic  circumstances. 
Two  paths  were  open  to  him,  reform  or  reaction: 
reform  would  of  necessity  entail  the  proclamation 
of  a  Constitution ;  reaction,  suppression  of  the  tend- 
ency towards  Liberalism  encouraged  by  his  father. 

General  Count  Loris  Melikov — the  all-powerful 
Minister  of  the  Interior  during  the  last  days  of  the 
reign  of  Alexander  II — was  credited  with  being  a 
Liberal.  Reaction  had  as  its  leader  and  devoted  ad- 
herent Monsieur  Pobiedonoszeff,  the  Procurator  of 
the  Holy  Synod,  and  as  its  public  exponent  Monsieur 
Katkoff,  the  famous  Moscow  journalist. 

The  Emperor  finally  decided  on  reaction,  and  per- 
sisted in  following  this  path  for  the  fourteen  years 
of  his  reign. 

1 


2    RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

As  I  was  a  young  man  at  the  time,  and  held  but 
minor  official  positions,  I  will  only  touch  on  a  few  of 
the  Sovereign's  better-known  characteristics,  which 
were  quite  the  opposite  of  those  of  his  successor, 
Nicholas  II.  I  will  also  endeavour  to  give  a  clear 
idea  of  his  foreign  policies,  which  I  was  able  to  ob- 
tain from  men  who  were  his  intimates. 

Alexander  III  was  undoubtedly  very  popular 
throughout  the  nation :  among  the  masses  he  had  the 
reputation  of  integrity,  loyalty,  and  firmness.  The 
people  felt  sure  of  him  and  this  won  him  their  uni- 
versal sympathy  and  understanding.  Furthermore, 
he  created  for  Russia  an  exceptionally  brilliant  po- 
sition beyond  the  confines  of  her  own  domain,  which 
naturally  greatly  flattered  the  amour-propre  of  the 
nation  as  a  whole.  Even  the  turbulent  Liberals  did 
not  escape  this  benign  influence  and  popular  senti- 
ment, thus  making  the  reign  of  Alexander  III  one  of 
complete  political  calm.  It  must  be  noted,  however, 
that  the  favouritism  and  Court  intrigue  so  over- 
whelmingly present  in  the  last  year  of  the  reign  of 
Alexander  II  were  non-existent  during  the  reign  of 
his  son. 

Alexander  III  had  his  favourites ;  foremost  among 
them  were  Count  Vorontzow-Dachkow,  Minister  of 
the  Imperial  Household,  General  Tcherevine,  Prince 
W.  Obolensky,  and  the  Cheremetiews.  But  these  in- 
timates of  the  Sovereign  had  no  political  influence 
over    him    whatsoever.    The    Emperor    dealt    ex- 


ALEXANDER  III  3 

clusively  with  his  Ministers  in  matters  of  state  and 
he  chose  these  in  person  with  the  greatest  of  care. 
The  Emperor  disliked  any  changes:  for  this  reason 
he  had  but  one  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs — Mr.  de 
Giers — whom  he  inherited  from  his  father ;  and  only 
one  Minister  of  War — General  Vannowsky,  who  had 
been  his  Chief  of  Staff  during  the  Turkish  Campaign 
of  1877-78. 

In  choosing  collaborators  he  did  not  rely  on  old 
family  names  and  traditions.  Mr.  Pobiedonoszeff, 
Procurator  of  the  Holy  Synod,  was  the  son  of  a  poor, 
country  priest ;  and  Mr.  Witte — later  created  a  Count 
of  the  Empire — and  world-famous  at  the  age  of 
forty-two  years — began  his  official  career  in  the 
modest  position  of  a  station-master.  It  was  not 
until  he  was  forty-one  that  the  latter 's  integrity  and 
acumen  attracted  Imperial  notice  and  he  was  placed 
at  the  head  of  the  financial  affairs  of  the  Empire. 
Soon  after  a  political  intrigue  of  doubtful  character 
was  started  against  him,  and  he  would  have  lost  both 
his  position  and  his  public  prestige  if  it  had  not  been 
for  the  powerful  protection  and  support  of  the  Em- 
peror, who  explained  his  action  by  stating  that  he 
not  only  felt  sure  of  his  Minister  but  felt  certain  that 
at  heart  he  had  acted  solelv  and  to  the  best  of  his 
ability  for  the  good  of  his  country. 

Mr.  Witte,  after  the  death  of  his  Imperial  master, 
preserved  the  greatest  loyalty  and  pious  affection 
for  him.    In  speaking  to  me  of  the  deceased  sov- 


4    RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

ereign  he  always  referred  to  him  as  "My  Czar." 
But  Alexander  III  could  be  severe  when  he  deemed 
it  necessary.  If  he  discovered  that  the  men  whom 
he  trusted  were  not  worthy  of  his  confidence  and  that 
his  trust  was  misplaced,  he  rid  himself  of  them  forth- 
with. This  happened  in  the  case  of  the  two  power- 
ful dignitaries,  Prince  Lieven,  Minister  of  Domains, 
and  General  Kryjanowsky,  General  Governor  of 
Orenburg.  Both  were  deprived  of  their  positions  at 
a  day's  notice,  the  Emperor  having  personally  found 
out  that  they  were  illegitimately  trafficking  in  state 
lands. 

As  a  husband,  Alexander  III  was  a  model ;  also  a 
generous,  kind  and  considerate  father.  He  married 
the  Princess  Dagmar  of  Denmark  (who  had  previ- 
ously been  the  fiancee  of  his  elder  brother,  who  died 
very  suddenly  at  Nice  shortly  before  the  wedding). 
Everywhere  in  the  salons  of  Petrograd  it  was  whis- 
pered that  the  young  Empress  was  the  first  woman 
the  Emperor  had  ever  known  intimately,  and  this 
was  probably  quite  true,  as  he  was  never  known  to 
have  an  intrigue  of  an  amorous  character  all  his 
life.  He  surrounded  his  wife  with  the  greatest 
tenderness  and  care,  but  would  not  permit  her  to 
interfere  in  the  slightest  way  with  matters  of  State. 
Neither  would  he  allow  her  to  interfere  with  his  per- 
sonal habits  of  living,  which  were  rigidly  exact  and 
somewhat  austere. 
I  quote  an  anecdote  that  was  told  me  on  this  mat- 


ALEXANDER  III  5 

ter  by  Count  Golenistcheff  Kutusoff,  Master  at  the 
Imperial  Court: 

The  Emperor  shared  a  large  double  bed  with  the 
Empress.  Being  a  man  of  huge  physique  he  was 
the  exact  opposite  of  the  Empress,  who  was  thin  and 
delicate]"  Owing  to  his  massive  weight,  the  mat- 
tress had  sunk  on  his  side  of  the  bed  and  when  he 
was  away  this  made  sleeping  uncomfortable  for  the 
Empress.  One  day,  while  he  was  absent  on  a  tour 
of  inspection  in  a  distant  part  of  Russia  the  Em- 
press could  stand  the  discomfort  no  longer  and  sent 
for  the  Household  Minister,  Count  Kutusoff,  and 
asked  to  have  the  mattress  changed  at  once.  This 
was  hurriedly  done.  The  Emperor  returned  late 
one  evening,  but  when  he  came  to  retire  for  the  night 
discovered  the  new  mattress.  Notwithstanding  the 
hour,  and  the  fact  that  the  Empress  had  already  gone 
to  bed,  he  sent  for  the  Household  Minister  and  or- 
dered him  peremptorily  to  return  the  discarded  bed 
equipment.  "You  are  to  take  orders  from  me  per- 
sonally," said  he,  "and  no  one  else."  Then  turn- 
ing with  his  delightful  smile  to  the  Empress,  who 
was  in  tears,  he  said:  "Since  that  is  thoroughly  J 
understood,  Marie,  let  us  now  go  to  bed!" 

The  Empress  was  passionately  fond  of  dancing 
and,  although  fetes  of  all  kinds  were  a  nuisance  and 
a  bore  to  the  Emperor,  the  Court  held  many  gay 
functions  of  diverse  kinds.  But,  as  Alexander  III 
worked  twelve  hours   out  of  the   twenty-four  and 


6    RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

was  therefore  very  tired  after  his  day's  duties,  it 
was  generally  the  rule  that  all  Court  entertainments 
finished  not  later  than  two  a.  m.  Sometimes,  how- 
ever, the  Empress,  carried  away  by  her  enthusiasm 
for  dancing,  would  forget  the  hour,  and  the  Emperor 
then  made  use  of  various  ways  of  bringing  the  func- 
tion to  a  close.  For  instance,  on  the  occasion  of  a 
ball  at  the  Peterhof  Palace,  where  the  Imperial 
couple  were  then  in  residence,  he  made  use  of  the 
following  unique  method.  Having  finished  his  game 
of  cards  he  signalled  the  Empress — who  was  danc- 
ing— that  it  was  time  to  finish,  but  as  she  was  too 
engrossed  to  notice  him  he  quietly  told  Prince  Obol- 
ensky,  who  was  his  favourite  A.  D.  C,  to  have  the 
music  stop  instrument  by  instrument.  Not  until 
only  two  instruments  were  left  still  playing  did  the 
Empress  leave  the  floor,  and  the  Emperor  laughed 
uproariously  at  his  bit  of  fun. 

The  Emperor's  tastes  were  of  the  very  simplest 
kind.  At  Gatchino,  his  favourite  winter  residence 
—a  huge  palace  built  by  Emperor  Paul  I— Alexander 
III  only  used  the  smallest  of  all  the  Imperial  apart- 
ments, and  the  Czarevitch  had  to  be  content  with 
three  very  small  rooms.  The  Dowager  Queen  of 
Greece  (an  ex-Grand  Duchess  of  Russia)  of  whom 
the  Emperor  was  extremely  fond,  told  me  that  once, 
while  visiting  the  Emperor  and  Empress  there,  she 
expressed  the  desire  to  be  located  somewhere  near 


ALEXANDER  III  7 

her  Imperial  hosts,  and  was  given  a  cot  in  the  bath- 
room adjoining  the  Empress's  bedroom! 

As  I  have  previously  stated,  Alexander  III  was 
a  model  father  of  a  family ;  he  entered  with  avidity 
into  the  most  trivial  details  that  concerned  the  edu- 
cation of  his  children.  Especially  was  the  Czare- 
vitch his  care  and  the  object  of  his  deepest  affection 
and  interest. 

After  having  studied  very  hard  as  a  boy,  Nicholas 
— the  Czarevitch — went  into  the  Navy  for  a  course 
of  training,  and  later  into  the  Army;  but  his  father 
permitted  him  to  rise  in  rank  but  very  slowly,  and 
when  Alexander  III  died  the  Czarevitch  had  only 
attained  the  rank  of  Colonel. 

When  Nicholas  reached  his  majority  the  Emperor 
sent  for  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis,  the  Grand  Admiral, 
and  a  prince  notorious  for  his  laxity  of  morals.  To 
him  the  Emperor  said  with  the  utmost  composure 
and  frankness,  " Alexis,  go  find  some  charming 
young  woman  for  Nikki.  You  understand  all  about 
these  matters.  But  on  no  account  say  a  word  to  my 
wife!"  The  Grand  Duke  hastened  upon  his  com- 
mission and  his  choice  fell  upon  a  young  dancer, 
Labounskaya  by  name;  Nicholas,  however,  soon 
changed  her  for  another  artiste — this  time  from  the 
Imperial  Ballet — the  now  famous  Kchessinskaya, 
whose  magnificent  residence  has  but  lately  been 
seized  by  the  Maximalists;  and  who  became — after 


8    RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  marriage  of  Nicholas — the  mistress  of  his  uncle, 
the  Grand  Duke  Sergius. 

With  regard  to  the  foreign  policies  of  Alexander 
III,  his  motto  was  ever  the  conservation  of  the 
peace  of  Europe.  The  Russian  people  gave  him  the 
nickname  of  "The  Pacifist"  because  of  his  well- 
known  antipathy  to  war,  and  he  thoroughly  de- 
served the  affectionate  title,  as  he  so  managed  his 
foreign  affairs  that  not  the  smallest  thing  disturbed 
the  diplomatic  quiet  of  his  reign. 

His  relations  with  Germany,  while  not  so  intimate 
as  they  had  been  during  the  reign  of  Alexander  II, 
were  nevertheless  absolutely  exact  and  correct,  and 
the  Alliance  of  the  three  Emperors  was  renewed  for 
a  term  of  three  years  at  the  Meeting  of  Skjernewice 
in  1884.  In  1887,  however,  it  was  not  renewed. 
The  rapprochement  with  France  was  beginning  to 
be  felt  which  was  later  consummated  under  Nicholas 
II.  M.  de  Giers,  Alexander's  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs,  had  but  to  take  the  orders  of  his  master, 
who  knew  exactly  what  he  wished  done. 

The  Emperor,  though  friendly  to  France,  was 
rather  sceptical  as  to  the  possibility  of  a  lasting 
rapprochement  between  a  Monarchy  and  a  Republic 
— finding  little  to  justify  it.  As  a  fact,  the  gradual 
"growing  together"  of  Russia  and  France  was  ef- 
fected without  much  aid  from  the  Emperor.  Two 
men  of  obscure  birth  and  of  subservient  positions 
played  very  important  parts  in  the  Russo-Franco 


II 


ALEXANDER  III  9 

relationship,  namely  M.  Ratchkowsky,  Chief  of  the 
Russian  Secret  Service  abroad,  and  Mr.  de  Hansen, 
a  Dane  by  birth. 

Ratchkowsky  lived  in  Paris,  and  was  on  most 
friendly  terms  with  M.  Gustave  Flourens — then  Min- 
ister of  Foreign  Affairs  in  the  French  Government, 
who  was,  on  his  side,  an  intimate  friend  of  our  Am- 
bassador in  Paris,  Baron  Mohrenheim,  ex-Minister 
to  Copenhagen,  at  which  place  Alexander  III  liked 
to  pass  what  he  called  his  "vacations." 

In  the  summer  of  1886,  on  one  such  vacation,  the 
Emperor,  accompanied  amongst  others  by  Ratch- 
kovsky,  confided  to  him  the  extent  of  his  very 
friendly  feelings  towards  France.  Very  naturally 
Ratchkowsky — who  was  an  enthusiast  on  the  sub- 
ject— hastened,  upon  his  return  to  Paris,  to  inform 
his  great  friend,  M.  Flourens,  and  also  Baron  de 
Mohrenheim,  about  this  conversation.  The  two  lat- 
ter at  once  set  to  work  to  such  good  purpose  that  the 
Emperor  consented  to  visit  a  French  battleship  in 
Copenhagen  harbour,  and  by  this  act  laid  the  first 
stone  in  the  edifice  of  the  future  Franco-Russo  Alli- 
ance. A  curious  incident  related  to  me  by  Baron  de 
Mohrenheim  is  worth  recording: 

When  the  official  ceremonials  for  the  reception 
of  the  Emperor  had  been  concluded,  some  one  in  the 
entourage  of  Alexander  III  suddenly  remembered 
that  the  French  national  air  had  been  forgotten! 
But  the  "Marseillaise"  played  in  the  presence  of  so 


10     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

decided  an  autocrat  as  Alexander  III,  seemed  an 
exceedingly  tactless  thing  to  attempt.  A  careful 
question  was  asked  the  Sovereign  in  words  as  well 
chosen  as  possible.  ' '  Whai^-d^D^-yoji^w^sh^^ 
about  it?"  the  Emperor  laughed.  "I  am  not  a  suf- 
ficiently good  musician  to  write  another  national 
air  especially  for  the  occasion."  In  this  easy  way 
the  matter  was  settled,  and  the  "Marseillaise"  was 
played,  the  Emperor  standing  at  salute  the  while. 

Mr.  de  Hansen  had  been  in  Danish  diplomatic  life 
for  some  time,  and  had  earned  the  illwill  of  Bis- 
marck, who  insisted  upon  his  resignation.  Hansen 
retired,  proceeded  to  Paris,  and,  becoming  a  French 
subject  under  the  name  of  M.  de  Hansen,  was  soon 
made  an  Honorary  Embassy  Councillor  at  the  Quai 
d'Orsay,  and,  as  he  knew  the  workings  of  the  Ger- 
man Chancellery  at  Berlin  from  the  bottom  upward, 
became  most  useful  to  the  French  Foreign  Office. 
He  soon  made  an  intimate  friend  of  Ratchkowsky — 
became  his  alter  ego  almost — and  through  the  cour- 
tesy of  Baron  de  Mohrenheim  sent  several  memo- 
randa to  Copenhagen  which  the  Danish  Court  did  not 
fail  to  bring  to  the  attention  of  the  Russian  Em- 
peror. These  memoranda  were  much  liked  by  Alex- 
ander, the  proof  being  that  an  annuity  of  12,000 
roubles  was  granted  to  M.  de  Hansen  from  the  Em- 
peror's privy  purse. 

At  the  proclamation  of  the  Russo-Franco  Alliance, 
Nicholas  II  did  not  forget  the  aged  Danish  diplomat, 


ALEXANDER  III  11 

and  conferred  on  him  the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Or- 
der of  Ste.  Anne. 

I  knew  de  Hansen  very  well  indeed,  and  he  had  a 
most  interesting  personality.  This  was  during  my 
stay  in  Paris  during  the  years  1905-08.  Despite 
his  advanced  age — he  was  at  least  eighty  years  old 
then — de  Hansen  had  preserved  all  his  great  clear- 
ness of  mind  and  lucidity  of  thought,  and  worked 
harder  than  ever  at  a  new  political  combination — 
his  dream  being  an  alliance  between  Russia,  France 
and  Germany.  His  ancient  and  most  mortal  enemy, 
the  Iron  Chancellor,  having  disappeared  from  the 
scene,  his  hatred  of  Germany  had  likewise  vanished. 

Hansen  had  great  faith  in  his  experience  and,  fur- 
ther, he  did  not  lack  supporters  for  his  ideas,  having 
won  over  such  French  statesmen  as  M.  de  Constans, 
Ambassador  to  Constantinople,  and  M.  Etienne,  the 
Vice-President  of  the  Chamber  of  Deputies.  Later, 
however,  the  occurrences  at  Tangiers  put  an  end  for 
ever  to  his  hopes,  and  disappointment  was  the  real 
cause  of  his  death. 

Our  rapprochement  with  France  notwithstanding, 
our  relations  with  Germany  maintained  their  correct 
character  until  the  death  of  the  German  Emperor, 
William  I,  who,  in  dying,  especially  recommended  his 
grandson,  William  II,  to  continue  these  relations  as 
they  then  existed. 

In  this  connection  an  interesting  incident  was  told 
me  by  a  secular  witness  at  the  deathbed  of  the  Ger- 


12     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

man  Emperor.  His  son,  Frederick,  the  Emperor 
to  be,  was  away  at  San  Remo  and  was  unable  to  re- 
turn in  time,  so  Prince  William  stood  in  his  father's 
place  at  his  grandfather's  bedside.  The  aged  Em- 
peror had  lost  his  power  of  vision  and  spoke  earn- 
estly to  Prince  William,  believing  he  was  the  Crown 
Prince  Frederick.  He  said  several  times,  "Fritz, 
my  son,  above  all  things  keep  on  good  terms  with 
Russia." 

As  soon  as  he  had  ascended  the  throne  in  1888 
William  II  began  his  visits  to  allied  and  friendly 
courts,  and  came  to  Petrograd  first,  notwithstanding 
the  very  intimate  relations  between  the  Hohenzollern 
and  Habsburg  Empires. 

At  the  Russian  Court  William  II  was  gushing  and 
almost  servile,  while  Alexander,  on  the  contrary, 
was  cold  and  very  reserved,  never  overstepping  the 
line  of  demarcation  required  by  strictly  formal  eti- 
quette. This  was  because  the  young  Emperor  had 
ever  been  most  decidedly  distasteful  and  antagonistic 
to  him.  Admiral  Lomen,  in  charge  of  the  Imperial 
Pavilion  where  the  meeting  of  the  two  Emperors  was 
held,  told  me  of  this  incident : 

When  the  German  Squadron  arrived  off  Cron- 
stadt,  William  expected  to  receive  the  Russian  Sov- 
ereign on  board  his  yacht;  but  Alexander  was  also 
in  his  yacht,  and  carefully  watched  the  evolutions  of 
the  German  ships  through  his  glasses.  By  him  on 
the  bridge  stood  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis,  and  Ad- 


COUNT    Wl ill 


ALEXANDER  III  13 

miral  Lomen.  "Well,"  said  Alexander,  turning  to 
the  Admiral, ' '  why  does  he  not  make  a  move  ? "  i  l  He 
seems  to  await  your  Majesty,"  answered  the  Ad- 
miral. "He  will  have  to  wait  a  long  time,  then. 
Alexis,  you  go  over  there  and  bring  the  little  German 
to  me."  The  Emperor's  orders  were  promptly  exe- 
cuted, and  William  II  was  forced  to  acquiesce — al- 
though he  did  so  with  the  worst  possible  grace  and 
arrived  on  the  Russian  Imperial  yacht  in  a  regular 
schoolboy's  sulks. 

The  return  visit  of  the  Russian  Sovereign  to  the 
Court  of  Berlin  was  delayed  for  many  months,  and 
Bismarck's  pride  and  amour-propre  were  hurt  by 
this.  In  revenge,  on  the  very  day  that  Alexander 
III  reached  the  German  capital,  an  order  was  given 
to  suspend  all  quotations  of  Russian  stocks  and 
bonds  on  the  German  Stock  Exchange.  Hence  it 
was  but  natural  that  Alexander  was  not  in  the  best 
of  humours,  despite  all  the  attention  and  pomp  with 
which  William  II  surrounded  him,  and  his  person- 
ally enthusiastic  reception  of  the  Russian  monarch. 
But  a  delicate  situation  of  this  kind  was  an  oppor- 
tunity for  Bismarck  to  show  his  great  diplomatic 
skill,  and  in  the  conversations  that  ensued  he  gained 
every  point  he  wished  to  make !  Alexander  received 
him  at  our  Embassy  in  Berlin,  and  the  interview 
lasted  for  more  than  an  hour.  At  the  beginning  of 
this  interview  (so  Count  ChouvalofT,  then  our  diplo- 
matic representative  in  Berlin,  told  me  afterwards) 


14     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

matters  began  very  badly.  Our  Sovereign  did  not 
attempt  to  disguise  his  ill  humour,  and  broke  a  silver 
match  stand  between  his  fingers.  But  little  by  little 
he  succumbed  to  the  charm  of  his  famous  and  clever 
adversary  and  when  saying  "Au  revoir"  to  Prince 
Bismarck  he  gave  him  his  hand,  saying:  "You  have 
convinced  me  and  I  believe  you.  But  can  you  guar- 
antee that  the  Berlin  Cabinet  will  not  have  a  sudden 
change  of  heart  and  that  I  shall  not  be  left  in  the 
dark  as  to  any  alterations  in  conditions?"  "Sire," 
Bismarck  answered  gravely,  "in  order  that  this 
should  come  to  pass,  I  should  have  to  be  in  another 
world." 

At  the  gala  dinner  afterwards  Alexander  lifted 
his  glass  to  the  health  of  the  Chancellor  of  the  Ger- 
man Empire,  who  beamed  with  delight,  having  come 
off  victorious  in  a  delicate  and  near-dangerous  strug- 
gle of  wits,  and  also  having  triumphed  over  his 
enemies  who  accused  him  of  gambling  for  his  own 
profit  with  immensely  vital  political  and  diplomatic 
questions  which  existed  between  Germany  and  Rus- 
sia. 

After  the  fall  of  Bismarck  the  two  Emperors  main- 
tained mutual  relations  of  sentiment  and  respect, 
notwithstanding  the  terror  with  which  Alexander 
inspired  the  young  German  Emperor.  The  political 
world  of  Russia,  however,  had  implicit  faith  in  the 
well-known  pacifist  ideals  of  their  monarch  and  the 
conviction  rapidly  gained  ground  that  the  Franco- 


ALEXANDER  III  15 

Russian  Rapprochement,  far  from  being  a  danger 
to  the  peace  of  Europe,  would  act  as  a  restraint  on 
France  should  she  evince  a  desire  to  create  dissen- 
sion. 

Our  relationship  with  Great  Britain  suffered  a 
severe   strain  in   1885.     The   Afghans   became   ob- 
streperous and  threatened  our  frontiers  in  Central 
Asia.     General    Komaroff,    who    commanded    our 
forces  in  Turkestan,  put  them  to  flight,  but  in  fol- 
lowing up  his   advantage   he   crossed   the   Afghan 
frontier  and  the  British  Government  became  greatly 
excited.     An  exchange  of  diplomatic  notes  followed 
and  the  language  of  the  British  Foreign  Office  be- 
came more  and  more  abrupt,  Lord  Salisbury  insist- 
ing upon  the  recall  of  General  Komaroff  and  his  dis- 
charge from  our  army.     The  action  of  the  British 
Cabinet  was  supported  by  a  partial  mobilization  of 
the  fleet,  and  war  was  in  the  air.     M.  de  Giers  was 
in  a  desperate  mental  condition  of  excitement  and 
worry.     The  aged  statesman  had  taken  as  his  polit- 
ical device  that  of  the  Duchess  of  Offenbach,  "Above 
all  things,  no  scandal  in  my  Castle."    Naturally  he 
pleaded  for  a  reconciliation,  but  having  no  success 
with  his  sovereign,  sent  him — as  his  personal  repre- 
sentative— Baron  de  Tominy,  First  Councillor  in  the 
Foreign  Office,  and  one  of  his  chief  aides,  a  man  in 
whom  he  had  the  utmost  confidence. 

The  Baron  attempted  to  fulfil  his  mission,  but 
after  having  used  all  his  arguments  in  vain  the  aged 


16     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

diplomat  brought  his  message  to  a  close  with  the 
words, ' '  Sire,  I  have  grown  white  in  your  diplomatic 
service.  It  is  old  age  and  long  experience  that 
speaks  from  my  mouth."  This  did  not  displease 
the  Emperor,  who  answered  kindly:  "I  see  indeed 
that  you  have  greatly  aged,  my  poor  Baron. ' '  And 
instead  of  disavowing  the  acts  of  General  Komaroff 
he  presented  him  with  a  sword  of  honour!  The 
meaning  of  this  gift  was  well  understood  in  London. 
Steps  were  immediately  taken  to  avoid  the  Czar's 
adroitly  pointed  challenge,  the  incident  closed,  and 
Russia  had  won  a  significant  diplomatic  victory. 

In  the  Balkans  Alexander  III  followed  the  same 
dignified  and  firm  policy,  notwithstanding  that  these 
were  ever  the  most  dangerous  of  diplomatic  grounds. 
He,  however,  caused  the  fall  of  Prince  Alexander  of 
Bulgaria,  because  the  latter  was  absolutely  deaf  to 
his  counsels,  and  would  not  recognize  his  successor, 
Prince  Ferdinand,  who  installed  himself  in  Sofia 
against  his  will.  His  authority  in  Europe  was  so 
great  that  Germany  was  forced  to  resign  herself  to 
following  out  his  desires  in  spite  of  her  alliance  with 
Austro-Hungary,  whose  candidate  for  the  monarchy 
of  Bulgaria  was  Prince  Ferdinand. 

In  the  spring  of  1894  Alexander  III  fell  ill  of  in- 
fluenza, which  developed  into  kidney  disease  shortly 
after.  The  Court  physicians  insisted  that  a  com- 
plete change  of  climate  was  necessary  and  for  a  time 
Corfu  was  considered  as  the  best  place — but  the 


ALEXANDER  III  17 

Emperor  refused  to  go  there.  Feeling  that  he  was 
a  dying  man,  he  said  that  he  wished ' '  to  die  at  home, ' ' 
and  the  Court  moved  to  the  Crimea,  as  climatic  con- 
ditions were  slightly  better  there.  But  the  disease 
gained  rapidly,  and  on  November  2nd  Alexander  III 
breathed  his  last. 

Feeling  his  end  approaching,  the  Emperor  Alex- 
ander expressed  his  desire  to  see  his  heir  married, 
and,  if  this  were  impossible,  to  know  at  least  that 
he  was  engaged.  There  had  already  been  a  question, 
more  than  once,  of  the  marriage  of  Nicholas.  One  of 
the  daughters  of  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  was  men- 
tioned; also  one  of  the  Princesses  of  Wurtemburg, 
daughter  of  Princess  Vera  (previously  a  Grand 
Duchess  of  Russia  and  sister  of  the  Dowager  Queen 
of  Greece)  and,  finally,  Princess  Alice  of  Hesse- 
Darmstadt.  The  Grand  Duke  of  Hesse  came  to 
Peterhof  three  years  before  the  death  of  Alexander 
III  with  his  daughter,  Alice,  but  had  no  success,  as 
the  Dowager  Empress  knew  the  secret  history  of  the 
Hessian  Court — in  short,  she  knew  the  character  of 
the  parents  of  Princess  Alice. 

The  mother  of  young  Princess  Alice  (Hesse- 
Darmstadt)  the  Princess  Alice  of  Great  Britain, 
daughter  of  Queen  Victoria,  had  died  when  her 
daughter  was  but  eleven  years  of  age  from  the  con- 
traction of  diphtheria,  while  nursing  her  son  through 
that  illness.  She  had  been  a  very  good  woman,  but 
unfortunately  had  a  strong  leaning  towards  mysti- 


18     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

cism,  and  this  she  doubtless  had  imparted  to  her 
daughter — a  tendency  which  was  later  to  be  of  so 
grave  and  tragic  a  portent  in  the  life  of  the  latter. 
Count  Osten-Sacken  told  me,  after  the  wedding  of 
Nicholas  II  and  Princess  Alice  had  been  finally  de- 
cided upon,  that  he  foresaw  and  prophesied  nothing 
good  of  this  union.  "  Remember,  my  friend,  these 
words  of  mine,"  he  said:  "Princess  Alice  will  be 
the  misfortune  and  unhappiness  of  Russia." 

Knowing  these  things,  it  seems  only  natural  that 
the  Dowager  Empress  had,  in  her  day,  vigorously 
opposed  this  union;  but  the  young  Princess  had 
made  a  strong  impression  upon  Nicholas.  Admiral 
Lomen,  who  accompanied  the  Imperial  heir,  (Nicho- 
las), on  his  voyage  to  the  far  east,  told  me  that  the 
photograph  of  Princess  Alice,  signed  by  her,  always 
stood  on  Nicholas'  bureau  beside  those  of  his  own 
family. 

Having  received  orders  from  his  father  with  re- 
gard to  his  forthcoming  wedding,  with  carte-blanche 
as  to  his  own  freedom  of  choice  in  the  matter,  Nich- 
olas at  once  went  to  see  his  aunt,  the  Grand  Duchess 
Marie  of  Saxe-Coburg,  where  Princess  Alice  hap- 
pened to  be  staying  at  the  time.  Because  he  was 
most  anxious  to  have  Nicholas  marry  a  German  and 
not  a  British  Princess,  Emperor  William  of  Ger- 
many hurried  as  fast  as  he  could  to  Coburg  also. 

Very  timid  by  nature,  Nicholas  could  not  muster 
up  the  courage  to  offer  himself  to  Princess  Alice, 


ALEXANDER  III  19 

and  it  was  the  German  Emperor  himself  who  forced 
his  hand.  When  the  engagement  was  finally  an- 
nounced formally,  the  German  Emperor,  radiant  and 
overjoyed  with  the  success  of  his  hopes  and  plans, 
met  the  British  Military  Attache  at  Darmstadt  and 
said  to  him  "  You  may  congratulate  me !  I  am  very 
much  pleased!  Nikky  has  at  last  proposed.  But 
it  was  hard  work  to  get  him  to  do  it,  and  I  had  to 
make  him  drink  a  whole  bottle  of  champagne  to  get 
up  his  courage!" 

Evidently  the  German  monarch  had  his  plans  all 
thought  out  and  rapidly  maturing.  Knowing  the 
weakness  of  Nicholas'  character,  he  hoped  and  fully 
expected  to  wield  much  influence  in  Russia  through 
the  Princess  Alice  when  she  became  Empress  of  Rus- 
sia. Having  been  of  so  much  help  in  making  the 
match,  he  no  doubt  felt  he  was  entirely  able  to  rely 
upon  the  gratitude  of  Princess  Alice. 

The  Emperor  Alexander  III  died  as  he  had  lived 
— simply  and  with  great  dignity — and  transacted 
matters  of  State  almost  to  the  very  last  minute  of 
his  existence,  even  signing  important  documents  on 
the  morning  of  his  death.  His  iron  will  sustained 
him  to  the  end,  as  it  had  done  all  through  his  life. 
During  the  latter  part  of  his  illness  he  also  suffered 
from  an  ailment  that  caused  his  feet  to  swell,  and  he 
could  scarcely  move  about  at  all.  On  the  day  of  his 
arrival  in  the  Crimea  the  following  incident  occurred 
(told  me  personally  by  Doctor  Hirsch) : 


20     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  Czar  was  slowly  getting  into  his  uniform  and 
was  found  doing  so  by  his  favourite  physician,  Dr. 
Hirsch,  his  intention  being  personally  to  meet  Prin- 
cess Alice  at  the  station.  "Sire,"  exclaimed  the 
physician,  "what  are  you  thinking  of?"  "Let  me 
do  as  I  wish,"  answered  the  Czar;  "I  am  fulfilling 
my  duty  as  a  father,  and  do  you  obey  the  orders  of 
your  Sovereign." 

I  was  at  my  post  in  our  Legation  at  Munich  when 
Alexander  III  died;  the  impression  made  in  both 
Austria-Hungary  and  Germany  was  profound,  and 
the  general  opinion,  freely  expressed,  was  that  the 
world  had  lost  a  firm  and  just  friend,  and  that  Eu- 
rope had  lost  its  chief  advocate  for  peace. 

Nicholas  inherited  a  white  page  in  his  country's 
political  history  and  an  exceedingly  healthy  condi- 
tion of  affairs  within  his  own  domains.  But,  ex- 
ternally, matters  did  not  look  so  bright.  The  Habs- 
burg  Empire  was  interfering  in  the  Balkan  States 
and  creating  a  situation  of  continuous  unrest.  The 
Franco-Eussian  Alliance  had  but  just  begun;  and 
Kusso-Germanic  relations  were  somewhat  uncertain. 
At  the  death  of  Alexander  III,  William  II  made  a 
great  parade  of  his  poignant  (?)  grief.  He  hurried 
in  person  to  our  Embassy  in  Berlin  to  bear  his  own 
condolences  and  sympathy,  and  attended  the  funeral 
services  in  the  Embassy  Chapel.  But  his  intimates 
very  well  knew  that  all  this  sorrow  was  cleverly 
feigned.     In  his  heart  of  hearts  the  present  German 


ALEXANDER  III  21 

Emperor  was  delighted  to  be  rid  of  a  load  that 
seriously  oppressed  him  and  baulked  his  pride, 
which  was  overweening  even  in  those  early  days  of 
his  career.  Furthermore,  he  was  thoroughly  aware 
of  the  feeble  character  of  Nicholas  II,  and  fervently 
hoped  that  he  (William  II)  might  even  use  his  influ- 
ence over  the  young  Czar  to  such  an  extent  that  it 
would  prove  possible  to  rule  Russia  from  Berlin ! 

Alexander  III  left  his  son  an  empire  that  was  all- 
suificient  to  itself  within  itself,  and  in  excellent  con- 
dition— also  powerfully  influential  beyond  its  bor- 
ders. 

In  the  twenty  years  of  his  reign  Nicholas  II  was  to 
destroy  absolutely  all  that  his  father  had  so  pains- 
takingly secured  and  to  waste  his  magnificent  heri- 
tage ruthlessly. 


CHAPTER  II 

BAVARIA   AND    PRUSSIA   AND  WILLIAM    II 

The  Regent,  King  Louis  III.     A  Royal  Tragedy.    Role  of 
Bavaria  in  the  German  Empire 

In  the  spring  of  1890  I  was  appointed  Second  Secre- 
tary of  the  Russian  Imperial  Legation  at  Munich. 
I  crossed  the  Russo-German  frontier  on  the  same 
day  as  newspaper  extras  announced  the  fall  of  Prince 
Bismarck  and  the  appointment  as  German  Chancellor 
of  Count  von  Caprivi.  Consequently  Bavaria  was 
in  a  turmoil.  The  young  Emperor  William  was  an 
absolutely  unknown  quantity,  and  every  one  realized 
that  the  Iron  Chancellor  had  been  the  inspiration 
and  motive  power  of  Germany's  prosperity  and 
power.  On  every  hand  people  spoke  with  the  great- 
est misgiving  of  the  young  Emperor.  The  Munich 
cafes  were  positively  humming  about  him.  He  was 
openly  dubbed  an  ingrate  and  a  fool,  and  Bismarck's 
name  was  on  every  lip. 

Personally  speaking,  the  disgrace  of  the  Imperial 
Chancellor  was  neither  a  surprise  nor  news  to  me. 
I  had  been  extremely  friendly  with  the  social  clique 

surrounding  Countess  Rantzau,  Bismarck's  daugh- 

22 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      23 

ter,  and  there  was  much  chattering  in  that  clique  re- 
garding the  dissensions  and  differences  of  opinion 
between  her  father  and  the  monarch.  It  had  been 
therefore  quite  clear  to  me  that  these  two  men,  of 
quite  divergent  character,  although  curiously 
enough  they  had  many  traits  in  common,  could  never 
really  agree  on  anything.  Both  of  them  were  auto- 
crats par  excellence.  William  II  believed  himself 
— and  still  believes  himself — directly  destined  by 
Providence  to  be  the  sole  guardian  not  only  of  Ger- 
manv  but  of  the  whole  world.  On  the  other  hand, 
Prince  Bismarck,  sure  of  himself  and  guided  by  his 
experience,  would  tolerate  no  opposition,  consider- 
ing the  German  Emperor  as  a  pupil  whom  it  was 
necessary  to  teach  and  to  lead,  with  the  help  of  a 
switch — like  a  school  boy.  It  was  reported  that  the 
Iron  Chancellor  sent  the  Emperor  all  kinds  of  state 
papers  for  his  signature,  without  even  taking  the 
trouble  to  inform  him  previously  of  their  contents 
or  consult  with  him  about  them. 

A  short  time  before  my  arrival  in  Munich,  Bis- 
marck went  to  Abazzia,  in  Austria,  to  take  part  in 
the  wedding  ceremonies  of  his  son,  Count  Herbert, 
with  the  Countess  Hoyos.  Count  Chouvaloff,  the 
then  Russian  Ambassador  to  Berlin,  a  personal 
friend  of  the  Iron  Chancellor,  was  to  take  part  in 
the  proceedings  as  a  witness.  His  position  was  a 
very  delicate  one,  for  he  was,  at  the  same  time,  a 
great  favourite  with  the  Emperor.     He  finally  de- 


24     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

cided  to  take  the  bull  by  the  horns,  and  informed 
the  Emperor  of  his  invitation  to  the  wedding,  asking 
him  what  he  would  do  were  he  in  his  place.  Natur- 
ally there  was  nothing  for  the  Emperor  to  do  but 
to  give  his  permission,  though  he  did  so  grudgingly. 
For  his  part,  the  Ambassador  did  his  best  to  curtail 
his  visit  to  Abazzia,  as,  knowing  the  violence  of  Bis- 
marck's temper,  he  feared  an  outburst.  What  the 
Count  feared  happened.  Interviewed  at  Abazzia 
by  a  Viennese  journalist,  Bismarck  told  him  of  his 
pending  resignation,  and  expressed  himself  in  terms 
that  left  nothing  to  the  imagination.  Almost  every 
word  of  the  interview  was  an  insult  to  the  dignity  of 
the  Sovereign,  and  the  Emperor  was  furious  when 
it  reached  him.  Fortunately  Chouvaloff  had  left 
Abazzia  before  the  interview  took  place. 

In  returning  to  Germany  from  Austria,  Bismarck 
passed  through  Munich,  and  stopped  for  a  few  days 
with  his  friend,  the  well-known  Professor  Lenbach, 
the  famous  Bavarian  portrait  painter.  He  was  tu- 
multuously  greeted.  Every  day  thousands  of  Ba- 
varians made  pilgrimages  to  Villa  Lenbach.  The 
cheers  of  the  vast  crowds  seemed  never  to  lessen 
and  the  Chancellor  was  forced  to  appear  again  and 
again  on  the  balcony  outside  his  window  in  order  to 
satisfy  the  people.  He  profited  by  the  occasion  and 
made  patriotic  speeches,  carefully  avoiding  in  them 
any  direct  reference  to  the  young  Emperor.  The 
Prince  Regent  of  Bavaria  and  all  the  members  of 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      25 

the  royal  family  left  Munich  the  clay  before  Bis- 
marck arrived,  wishing  to  avoid  the  difficulty  of  being 
between  such  a  Scylla  and  such  a  Charybdis.  But 
the  Prince  Regent  had  slily  given  a  free  hand  to 
the  municipal  authorities,  and  thus  Bismarck's  re- 
markable reception  might  well  be  termed  official. 
He  was  specially  escorted  to  the  Town  Hall,  and 
wrote  his  name  in  the  Golden  Book. 

I  well  remember  comparing  the  reception  for  Bis- 
marck with  that  given  the  Emperor  by  the  citizens 
of  Munich  on  the  occasion  of  his  first  visit  to  the 
Bavarian  capital  in  1892.  Naturally  the  Prince  Re- 
gent, surrounded  by  the  royal  family,  ministers  and 
high  dignitaries  of  the  court,  was  at  the  station. 
Troops  were  posted  along  the  route  of  the  Imperial 
procession.  Eager  to  see  the  show,  the  streets  were 
a  solid  mass  of  people,  but  the  cheering  was  very 
feeble,  and  I  remember  that  when  William  II  left 
Munich  shrill  whistlings  and  catcalls  were  heard  on 
all  sides.  It  was  learned  afterwards  that  when  he 
wrote  his  name  in  the  Golden  Book  William  added 
the  following:  "Sic  volo,  sic  jubeo."  The  citizens 
of  Munich  understood  the  reference.  They  inter- 
preted it  as  a  direct  challenge  to  their  old  idol,  Bis- 
marck. Moreover,  the  Emperor  was  deliberately 
one  hour  late  for  the  formal  reception  tendered  him 
at  the  Town  Hall,  and  the  reason  for  his  tardiness 
was  that  he  was  being  photographed  in  his  many 
uniforms,  one  after  the  other.     The  citizens  of  Mu- 


26     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

nich  at  that  time  felt  that  their  pride,  their  city,  and 
Bavaria  in  general  had  been  insulted.  But  as  every- 
thing in  this  world  changes,  the  sentiments  of  the 
Bavarians  were  no  exception  to  the  rule,  and  when 
socialism  made  such  rapid  progress  in  Prussia,  and 
the  Emperor  lost  much  of  his  popularity,  it -was  in 
Bavaria  especially  that  he  found  it  again. 

During  my  stay  there  (1890-1896)  the  Court  was 
very  quiet.  The  Prince  Regent  was  almost  an  oc- 
togenarian and  found  no  amusement  at  all  in  worldly 
pleasures,  fetes,  and  so  forth.  He  was  an  enthusi- 
astic sportsman,  and  despite  his  great  age  was  al- 
ways ready  to  climb  the  Bavarian  mountains  after 
the  chamois.  To  these  hunting  parties  he  usually 
invited  men  of  literary  and  artistic  pursuits,  also  a 
few  doctors  and  surgeons  who  had  made  themselves 
famous  by  their  attainments.  He  always  rose  at 
five  in  the  morning,  dined  at  four  in  the  afternoon, 
and  was  in  bed  by  8  p.  m.  His  food  was .  of  the 
simplest,  as  good  cooking  meant  nothing  to  him. 
He  was  a  great  connoisseur  of  paintings,  and  after 
having  attended  to  state  business  always  visited  the 
studios  of  painters  and  sculptors,  and  constantly 
made  purchases  there.  In  this  way  he  got  together 
a  really  fine  collection  of  examples  of  modern  art. 
Nothing  gave  him  greater  pleasure  than  the  offer 
of  some  sort  of  picture,  provided  of  course  that  it 
was  well  executed.  Once  when  the  Grand  Duke 
Vladimir  of  Russia  was  in  Munich  the  Prince  Re- 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II     27 

gent  told  him  of  his  desire  to  obtain  photographs  of 
three  paintings  which  were  at  Tsarskoe  Seloe,  near 
Petrograd,  representing  episodes  of  the  visit  of  Em- 
peror Nicholas  I  of  Russia  to  Munich  during  the 
reign  of  King  Louis  I  of  Bavaria,  his  father.  The 
Grand  Duke  mentioned  this  to  Nicholas  II,  who  at 
once  ordered  that  the  three  originals  be  sent  to  the 
Prince  Regent.  I  was  chosen  to  convey  them  to  him. 
The  Prince  Regent  was  overjoyed.  On  my  arrival  at 
the  Station  his  A.  D.  C.  gave  me,  in  the  Prince  Re- 
gent's name,  the  Order  of  the  Crown  of  Bavaria, 
and  an  invitation  to  dine  at  the  royal  palace  that 
night.  I  was  requested  to  be  at  the  palace  half  an 
hour  before  dinner. 

I  found  the  Prince  Regent  studying  the  three  pic- 
tures I  had  brought.  "I  shall  never  forget  the  deli- 
cate attention  of  Emperor  Nicholas,"  he  said.  "I 
have  telegraphed  him  my  most  sincere  thanks.  But 
admittedly,  you  did  the  talking  necessary  to  obtain 
them,  and  that  is  the  reason,"  he  added,  in  pointing 
to  the  decoration  which  I,  of  course,  was  wearing, 
"that  I  wished  to  give  you  proof  of  my  recognition 
of  your  services." 

From  the  political  point  of  view  the  Prince  Regent, 
contrary  to  his  predecessor,  King  Ludwig  II,  was  a 
fervent  supporter  of  the  Imperial  federation.  But 
when  Berlin  attempted  to  infringe  on  Bavarian 
rights  he  knew  how  to  stand  up  for  them. 

From  a  religious  point  of  view,  although  a  strong 


28     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Catholic,  he  proved  himself  extremely  tolerant.  His 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  Count  von  Crailsheim, 
and  his  Chief  Huntsman,  Count  Pappenheim,  were 
both  Protestants. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  regency  the  Prince  Kegent 
was  not  popular  with  the  people.  They  even  went 
so  far  as  to  accuse  him  of  having  forced  the  abdi- 
cation pf  Ludwig;  IL^who  had  been  the  idol  of  his 
people.  ^ButTTtTle  by  little  he  gained  the  affection 
of  the  masses  by  his  goodness  and  his  extreme  sim- 
plicity. Thus  when  he  celebrated  his  ninetieth 
birthday  he  was  surrounded  by  the  love  and  friend- 
ship of  his  people.  He  died  at  the  age  of  ninety- 
four,  having  always  maintained  not  only  a  simple  lu- 
cidity and  clearness  of  mind  but  a  powerful  and  ro- 
bust body.  A  year  prior  to  his  death  he  complained 
bitterly  to  his  friends  that  while  out  hunting  he  had 
missed  a  chamois.  "My  sight  is  beginning  to  fail 
me,"  he  said  sadly. 

His  son,  who  now  reigns  in  Bavaria,  under  the  title 
of  Ludwig  III,  only  resembles  his  father  in  his 
simplicity  of  manner.  He  is  a  man  of  very  strong 
character,  and  very  definite  in  his  religious  convic- 
tions. He  once  told  me  that  he  blessed  Heaven  every 
day  for  being  born  a  Catholic.  It  is  therefore  not 
at  all  astonishing  that  he  surrounds  himself  with 
priests,  and  has  become  the  revered  leader  of  the  Cen- 
tre Party,  or  Catholics,  in  Germany.  When  he  was 
Crown  Prince  he  always  paraded  his   exclusively 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      29 

Bavarian  sentiments.  At  the  coronation  of  Nicholas 
II  at  Moscow,  at  which  he  was  present  representing 
his  father,  he  said:  "We  Bavarians  are  Allies  of 
Prussia,  but  nut  her  vassals."  But  when  he  became 
Regent,  and  later  King  of  Bavaria,  he  even  surpassed 
his  father  in  his  cujt_o_f.Jjiip©*ia4»m.  He  married 
an  Austrian  Arch-duchess,  of  a  Tuscany  house.  He 
had  fifteen  children,  of  whom  eleven  are  still  alive. 
Not  having  a  large  personal  fortune,  and  his  father 
having  a  very  limited  Civil  List  as  Regent,  he  was  on 
short  commons  as  far  as  money  was  concerned  while 
he  was  heir  presumptive.  His  sons  were  always  in 
need  of  money.  Pjdnee-Rupprecht,  (the  eldest),  heir 
to  the  throne,  and  the  commander  of  one  section  of 
the  German  front  in  France  during  the  great  war, 
did  not  attempt  to  hide  from  me  that  he  was  very 
often  without  twenty  marks  in  his  pocket!  The 
King  is  extremely  amiable,  but  a  despot  to  his  family. 
He  is  not  popular  in  Bavaria,  but  on  the  other  hand 
he  is  very  high  in  favour  with  the  Emperor. 

His  brother,  Prince_Leopold,  who  commands  the 
German  troops  today  (January,  1918)  in  Russia,  is 
married  to  the  Archduchess  Gizela  of  Austria, 
daughter  of  the  late  Emperor  Francis  Joseph. 
Since  his  youth  he  has  been  devoted  to  things  mili- 
tary and  to  a  military  career.  Having  obtained  the 
highest  rank  he  became  notorious  for  his  extreme 
cruelty  towards  his  soldiers.  When  in  1892  the  So- 
cialists   obtained   representation   in    the    Bavarian 


30     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Chamber  of  Deputies  their  first  interpellation  was 
regarding  the  unhappy  and  wretched  conditions  pre- 
vailing in  the  Bavarian  army.  Although  the  name 
of  Prince  Leopold  was  not  mentioned  every  one  un- 
derstood who  was  meant.  The  Prince  Regent  also 
understood  perfectly  well  to  whom  the  Socialists  re- 
ferred, and  for  some  time  Prince  Leopold  had  to  ef- 
face himself.  His  notoriety  as  a  cruel  disciplinar- 
ian and  a  desire  to  flatter  the  Bavarians  made  Em- 
peror William  offer  him  this  highly  important  com- 
mand in  the  European  conflict. 

Of  the  other  Bavarian  Princes,  Prince  Ludwig 
Ferdinand,  who  married  Infanta  Paz  of  Spain,  and 
whose  mother  was  a  Spanish  princess,  is  of  some  in- 
terest. He  is  of  a  somewhat  original  character,  and 
very  popular  with  the  masses.  He  was  by  profes- 
sion a  male  midwife,  and  every  day  spent  hours  tak- 
ing care  of  women  in  child  labour  in  his  private  hos- 
pital. Besides  this  hobby,  he  is  a  fine  musician,  and 
a  great  admirer  of  Wagner.  At  Wagnerian  Festi- 
vals in  Munich  he  is  always  to  be  seen  playing  with 
the  first  violins  in  the  orchestra. 

Another  interesting  personality  among  the  Ba- 
varian Princes  was  the  Duke  Charles  Theodore, 
father  of  the  present  Queen  of  the  Belgians,  who 
was  a  surgeon  oculist,  and  pupil  of  the  famous  Rus- 
sian oculist,  Ivanhoff.  He  personally  took  care  of 
patients  in  his  hospital,  assisted  by  his  wife — a  very 


BAVA1UA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      31 

beautiful  princess  of  the  House  of  Braganza  of  Por- 
tugal. 

As  is  known,  the  more  recent  history  of  Bavaria 
contains  some  tragic  pages.  Two  of  her  kings, 
Otto  I  and  Ludwig  II,  were  mad. 

King  Otto  I  was  stricken  with  the  disease  to  which 
he  later  succumbed  during  the  French  campaign  of 
70-71,  in  which  he  took  part  as  a  lieutenant.  Very- 
sensitive  and  refined,  it  is  said  the  sight  of  so  much 
blood,  and  the  horrors  of  war,  caused  the  loss  of  rea- 
son. When  I  was  in  Munich  King  Otto  was  shut  up 
in  the  castle  of  Furstenrid,  a  few  kilometres  from  the 
capital.  A  small  court  was  attached  to  his  person. 
Half  a  squadron  of  the  Light  Horse  bearing  his 
name  were  at  once  his  Guard  of  Honour  and  his 
warders.  The  unhappy  Prince  had  then  reached  a 
stage  of  madness  akin  to  bestiality.  During  the 
early  stages  of  the  disease  he  had  moments  of  lu- 
cidity. When  his  brother's  death  was  announced 
to  him,  he  asked  at  once  for  his  gala  uniform  and  his 
decorations,  and  half  opening  the  door  he  shouted 
to  the  crowd,  "It  is  I  who  am  now  your  king." 

Baron  von  Redwitz,  Grand  Master  of  his  court 
told  me  the  following  episode.  Ordinarily  the  King 
took  his  meals  alone,  but  on  Saturdays  his  whole 
court  met  at  table.  The  King  was  a  great  smoker, 
and  smoked  cigarettes  all  through  his  meals.  One 
day  he  was  more  taciturn  and  silent  than  usual,  and 


32     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIA'N  DIPLOMAT 

did  not  smoke  at  all.  At  dessert  Baron  von  Red- 
witz,  accustomed  to  smoke  at  the  royal  table,  asked 
permission  of  the  King  to  smoke.  As  the  King  did 
not  answer  he  took  silence  for  consent  and  lighted 
his  cigar.  He  was  considerably  upset  when  the 
King,  addressing  himself  to  the  valet  de  chambre, 
who  was  standing  behind  him,  exclaimed,  "Look  at 
Fritzel!  That  beast  smokes  in  any  case."  His 
moments  of  lucidity,  already  becoming  more  and 
more  rare,  completely  ceased  during  the  last  few 
years  of  his  existence. 

More  than  once  the  entourage  of  the  Prince  Re- 
gent advised  him  to  proclaim  the  truth  regarding 
King  Otto's  condition,  and  in  this  way  put  an  end 
to  a  situation  that  was  so  entirely  abnormal.  The 
Regent,  however,  always  refused  to  do  anything  of 
the  kind.  As  has  been  said,  he  was  accused  at  one 
time  by  the  people  of  having  forced  the  abdication 
of  Ludwig  II,  and  he  did  not  wish  to  bear  the  burden 
of  another  accusation  of  the  same  kind.  His  son, 
however,  was  less  scrupulous,  and  accepted  the 
Crown  offered  to  him  by  the  representatives  of  his 
people. 

King  Ludwig  II,  elder  brother  of  Otto  I,  and  his 
predecessor  on  the  throne  of  Bavaria,  was  really  a  re- 
markable sovereign.  Unfortunately  from  his  youth 
upward  he  was  abnormal,  and  ended  his  days  in  a 
state  of  absolute  madness.  He  had  been  nicknamed 
"The  Virgin  King,"  because  he  had  never  been 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      33 

known  to  have  an  amorous  intrigue.     Having  de- 
cided to  marry  in  order  to  leave  descendants,  he 
became  engaged  to  his  cousin,  a  Bavarian  princess, 
who  later  married  the  Duke  d'Alengon,  and  came 
to  such  a  tragic  end  in  the  terrible  bazaar  fire  in 
Paris.     The  day  before  the  wedding,  when  all  the  in- 
vitations to  the  European  Courts  had  been  accepted, 
Ludwig  II  suddenly  broke  off  the  marriage,  although 
most  of  his  guests,  royal  and  otherwise,  had  gath- 
ered in  Munich,  and  others  were  en  route.     He  had 
always  avoided  the  society  of  women,  and  the  only 
exception  that  he  ever  made  was  in  favour  of  the 
Empress  Marie  of  Russia,  wife  of  Alexander  II,  for 
whom  he  entertained  a  very  strong  feeling  of  friend- 
hip.     The    Grand    Duke    Vladimir,    her    son,    and 
brother  of  Alexander  III,  told  me  that  his  mother, 
having  been  ill,  and  staying  on  the  Khine,  was  or- 
dered by  her  doctors  to  go  to  Italy  for  her  health. 
Her    journey    would    take    her    through    Munich. 
Learning  this,  Ludwig  II  begged  her  to  stop  over, 
if  only  for  a  few  hours.     The  invitation  was  couched 
in  such  fervent  terms  that  she  could  not  decline  it. 
She,  however,  asked  the  King  to  receive  her,  if  pos- 
sible, in  one  of  his  castles,  so  as  to  avoid  all  crowds 
and  ceremonies.     The  King  offered  her  the  Chateau 
of  Berg,  on  Lake  Starenberg,  quite  near  Munich, 
where  he  later  ended  his  days  in  so  terribly  tragic  a 
way.     Ludwig  II  personally  attended  to  the  prep- 
arations for  the  Empress,  and  to  her  installation 


34     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

there.  All  the  wonders  of  the  Glypthotheke  (fa- 
mous museum  of  sculptors)  were  scattered  about  the 
park  surrounding  the  castle.  All  the  royal  furni- 
ture itself  was  taken  to  the  castle — or  enough  of  it 
to  fill  all  the  apartments.  The  Empress,  accom- 
panied by  her  son,  the  Grand  Duke  Vladimir,  arrived 
at  the  Chateau  of  Berg  just  before  dinner.  The 
alleys  and  roads  of  the  park  were  lighted  like  a  beau- 
tiful fairyland.  After  dinner  the  King  suggested  a 
trip  on  the  lake  in  a  gilded  gondola  which  was  spe- 
cially built  from  his  own  design.  The  entire  lake 
was  magnificently  illuminated  by  hundreds  of 
torches,  each  one  held  by  a  peasant  in  national  cos- 
tume. The  peasants  were  all  in  boats,  and  sang 
their  native  and  national  songs.  The  King  desired 
the  Empress  to  accompany  him  alone  on  the  gondola, 
but  the  Empress,  who  was  afraid,  begged  the  King 
to  permit  her  son,  the  Grand  Duke,  to  accompany 
them.  At  her  departure  the  King  asked  the  Em- 
press to  give  him  a  rose  she  wore  in  her  dress. 
Later  this  rose — all  faded  and  crumpled — was  found 
carefully  preserved  among  his  most  sacred  pos- 
sessions. 

The  Bavarian  sovereign  had  always  avoided  peo- 
ple, and  during  the  last  days  of  his  life  saw  abso- 
lutely no  one.  He  was  then  a  maniac,  living  only 
by  night  and  going  to  bed  by  day.  He  began  his  day 
at  sundown.  My  chief  at  Munich — Count  Osten- 
tSacken— told  me  the  following  details  of  his  first 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      35 

reception  by  the  King.  At  midnight  a  gala  carriage 
and  an  escort  of  honour  called  for  Count  Osten- 
Sacken  and  the  legation  personnel  in  order  to  take 
them  to  the  royal  palace.     Before  this,  Count  Per- 

w/  X  _  |  -■■■■ 

glassy-Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies  of  the  Court, 
had  asked  my  chief,  in  the  King's  name,  to  make  his 
official  greeting  in  German,  quite  contrary  to  diplo- 
matic usage,  which  prescribes  the  use  of  the  French 
language  for  this  purpose.  The  Russian  minister 
refused  categorically,  saying  that  he  was  not  suffi- 
ciently cognizant  with  the  German  language.  But 
Count  Perglass  tried  again,  and  Count  Osten-Sacken 
perforce  had  partially  to  acquiesce.  He  was  deter- 
mined that  the  official  exchange  of  courtesies  should 
take  place  in  French,  but  that  he  would  speak  Ger- 
man in  any  conversation  which  would  naturally  fol- 
low the  precise  formal  language  and  allocution.  The 
palace  was  lighted  from  top  to  bottom.  The  King 
received  the  Count  in  the  great  Throne  Room,  sur- 
rounded by  the  high  dignitaries  of  the  Crown.  All 
of  these  His  Majesty  dismissed  as  soon  as  the  official 
part  of  the  presentation  was  over.  In  the  conversa- 
tion which  followed  the  monarch  showed  a  surprising 
knowledge  of  the  political  life  of  Europe.  As  had 
been  arranged,  the  conversation  was  in  German. 
Suddenly  the  King  quoted  a  French  proverb.  Count 
Osten-Sacken  at  once  seized  the  opportunity,  and 
from  that  moment  French  took  the  place  of  German 
in  the  conversation.     Finally  the  Count  asked  the 


36     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

King  why  he  had  insisted  on  hearing  him  massacre 
the  German  language,  especially  as  the  King  spoke 
French  irreproachably.  The  King  smiled  and  said : 
"It  was  not  merely  a  caprice.  You  see  I  have  not 
spoken  to  any  one  for  several  years.  I  was  sure  I 
had  not  forgotten  my  native  language,  but  I  was  not 
so  sure  of  my  French." 

As  a  matter  of  fact  the  King  never  even  saw  his 
Ministers,  who  sent  in  all  their  reports  in  writing. 
He  lived  entirely  alone,  and  in  a  most  fantastic  way. 
He  protected  Wagner,  of  whose  talent  he  was  a 
passionate  admirer,  but  to  whose  work  he  listened 
in  an  absolutely  empty  and  darkened  theatre,  seated 
far  back  in  the  royal  box.  He  liked  to  apparel  him- 
self in  Wagnerian  costumes,  and,  dressed  as  Lohen- 
grin, had  himself  towed  about  in  a  very  small  boat 
by  a  swan  on  the  lake  belonging  to  one  of  the  castles. 
It  was  in  this  dress  that  Count  Werthern,  Minister 
of  Prussia  to  Bavaria,  surprised  the  King  one  day, 
and  dragged  from  him  his  consent  to  the  heredity  of 
the  Hohenzollerns  to  the  Imperial  throne  of  Germany 
— to  which  he  had  always  been  strongly  opposed. 
His  carriages  were  the  most  fantastic  creations. 
His  sleigh,  for  instance,  was  gilded,  and  the  cushions 
were  in  blue  velvet  trimmed  with  ermine.  He  trav- 
elled by  night  over  the  mountains  accompanied  by 
his  body-guard,  who  carried  electric  torches. 

There  has  been  much  gossip  regarding  his  abdica- 
tion and  the  last  days  of  his  life.     I  can  give  an 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II     37 

authentic  and  detailed  account  of  the  tragedy,  as  the 
events  were  told  me  by  witnesses  all  of  whom  played 
important  parts  in  the  final  drama. 

Ludwig  II  had  entirely  expended  all  state  moneys 
in  the  building  of  his  fairy  castles  and  the  financial 
backing  and  support  of  Wagner.  His  Ministers  had 
not  hidden  from  him  the  sad  state  of  the  Bavarian 
finances,  and  finally  had  to  refuse  him  the  credits  he 
asked  for.  The  King,  who  by  this  time  had  com- 
pletely lost  his  reason,  wrote  to  Queen  Victoria  of 
England  proposing  to  exchange  the  crown  of  Ba- 
varia for  a  few  million  pounds  sterling  and  a  desert 
island  in  some  ocean  where  he  could  build  himself  a 
fantastic  castle.  This  letter  of  his  was  intercepted, 
and  as  it  proved  conclusively  the  mental  condition 
of  the  unfortunate  monarch  the  members  of  the  royal 
family  and  the  Ministers  of  State  met  in  council 
under  the  presidency  of  Prince  Luitpold,  the  future 
Regent  of  Bavaria,  and  decided  to  proclaim  to  the 
people  the  insanity  of  the  King,  and  their  intention 
of  asking  him  for  his  abdication,  and  then  to  estab- 
lish a  Regency  over  the  Kingdom.  Two  Ministers, 
the  Counts  Crailsheim  and  Feilitch,  from  whom  I 
received  all  these  details,  were  sent  to  the  King  to 
acquaint  him  with  the  decision  of  the  Crown  Council. 
Ludwig  II  refused  categorically  to  receive  them. 
He  sent  them  a  small  bit  of  paper  addressed  to  the 
Count  Montjelas,  leader  of  his  military  escort,  on 
which  was  written  in  his  own  handwriting  an  order 


21218 J 


38     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

to  put  out  the  eyes  of  the  two  Ministers,  and  to  im- 
prison them  in  one  of  the  subterranean  cells  of  his 
castle.  Naturally  enough  his  order  was  not  ex- 
ecuted, and  the  two  gentlemen  reached  Munich  in 
safety.  But  the  news  of  the  demand  which  was 
made  on  the  King  soon  spread  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  the  royal  castle.  The  King  was  very  popular 
amongst  the  Bavarian  mountain  folk.  These  latter 
armed  themselves  and  hastened  to  the  assistance  of 
their  beloved  King.  In  Munich  every  one  expected 
very  serious  trouble,  and  the  situation  became  ex- 
ceedingly difficult.  It  was  then  that  Dr.  Goudden, 
the  head  of  an  Institution  of  Mental  Defectives,  of- 
fered his  services  to  Prince  Luitpold  and  the  Minis- 
ters. He  promised  to  obtain  from  the  King  every- 
thing that  was  required  of  him,  without  resorting  to 
violence  or  force,  and  to  remove  him  to  one  of  the 
palaces  near  the  capital,  in  order  to  get  him  away 
from  the  mountain  people — his  friends  and  pro- 
tectors. The  proposition  was  accepted,  and  Goud- 
den kept  his  word. 

When  he  presented  himself  to  the  King,  despite  all 
his  previous  orders  to  the  contrary,  Ludwig  II  not 
only  received  him  in  a  friendly  way,  but  signed  his 
abdication  at  once  and  permitted  himself  to  be  taken 
to  Berg  Castle  on  Lake  Starenberg,  near  Munich. 

Dr.  Goudden  took  up  his  residence  there  also,  and 
during  the  first  few  days  nothing  happened.  The 
King  seemed  to  like  the  doctor's  society.    At  the  end 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II      39 

of  a  week,  however,  the  King  asked  the  physician  to 
rid  him  of  the  surveillance  of  the  police,  who  were 
posted  at  intervals  about  the  castle  and  in  the  parks. 
These  men  annoyed  him,  the  King  said,  on  his  walks 
abroad.  The  doctor  was  imprudent  enough  to  ac- 
cede to  the  King's  request,  and  the  next  day  two 
bodies — those  of  the  doctor  and  the  King — were 
pulled  out  of  Lake  Starenberg.  The  inquest  deter- 
mined that  a  tremendous  struggle  must  have  taken 
place  between  the  two  men.  The  King's  chest  was 
badly  torn  by  the  Doctor's  finger  nails,  and  the 
muscles  of  the  Doctor's  throat  were  terribly  mangled 
and  torn.  But  it  was  proved  that  the  King  died  of 
heart  failure.  After  having  strangled  his  victim, 
Ludwig  II  had  dragged  his  body  into  the  lake,  prob- 
ably to  hide  all  traces  of  his  crime.  The  water  being 
very  cold  at  that  time  of  year — it  was  the  late  autumn 
in  1886 — and  the  King  being  very  stout,  and  natu- 
rally over-excited  by  the  fight  he  had  just  finished  in 
so  terrible  a  fashion,  his  weakened  heart  could  not 
stand  the  shock  of  the  icy  water. 

Ludwig  II  lay  in  state  as  he  had  lived.  The  body 
was  dressed  in  the  picturesque  attire  of  the  Knights 
of  St.  George,  and  a  rose  was  placed  in  his  folded 
hands. 

The  memory  of  the  King  has  always  remained 
popular  in  Bavaria.  It  is  difficult  to  find  even  the 
smallest  village  that  has  not  erected  a  monument  of 
some  kind  to  his  memory.     The  masses,  as  a  whole, 


40     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

for  one  thing,  like  legends,  and  the  King's  life  was 
fantastic;  but  more  than  this,  the  Bavarian  people, 
not  without  reason,  saw  in  the  person  of  Ludwig  II 
a  defender  of  the  rights  of  Bavaria  against  Prussia, 
and  a  heavy  curb  in  the  teeth  of  Hohenzollern  ambi- 
tion. 

I  was  in  Bavaria  four  years  after  the  King's 
death.  The  Prince  Regent  was  doing  everything  he 
could  to  gain  the  sympathy  of  the  people,  but  had 
singularly  failed  in  doing  so  despite  four  years  of 
effort.  The  ghost  of  the  late  King  rose  between  him 
and  the  Bavarian  people.  The  old  Prince  knew  this 
and  suffered  much  because  of  it. 

Bavaria  is,  after  Prussia,  the  largest  state  in  the 
German  Federation.  But  the  political  life  of  the 
Empire  is  almost  entirely  centred  in  Berlin.  Prus- 
sian intrigue  has  been  crowned  with  success.  Count 
Crailsheim,  Bavarian  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
was  merely  a  docile  instrument  in  the  hands  of  the 
German  Chancellor.  Of  course  the  Emperor,  Wil- 
liam II,  has  never  failed  to  be  extremely  polite  to  the 
Bavarian  Court,  and  carefully  avoids  anything  which 
might  tend  to  a  misunderstanding,  even  of  the  slight- 
est kind.  He  well  knew  the  susceptibilities  of  the 
Bavarian  Princes,  and  has  never  forgotten  the  words 
of  Prince  Ludwig  at  Moscow — ''Bavaria  is  an  ally  of 
Prussia,  but  not  a  vassal. " 

As  may  be  supposed,  the  foreign  legations  at 
Munich  played  a  very  secondary  part  as  far  as  the 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II     41 

politics  of  the  German  p]mpire  were  concerned.  Yet 
the  European  chancelleries  considered  the  Bavarian 
post  as  one  from  which  excellent  observations  could 
be  made,  and  chose  men  as  their  representatives 
there  with  great  care.  It  thus  follows  that  Munich 
became  a  training  school  for  future  Ambassadors 
For  example,  of  Russian  Ministers  to  Bavaria,  Count 
Osten-Sacken  and  M.  Iswolsky  became,  the  former 
Ambassador  at  Berlin,  and  the  latter  Minister  of 
Foreign  Affairs  in  Russia.  The  Ministers  of 
France,  Comte  de  Moui,  the  Marquis  de  Montebello, 
and  Monsieur  Barrere,  wrent  from  Munich  as  Am- 
bassadors to  Petrograd  and  Rome.  The  Minister  of 
Austria-Hungary,  Count  Doubsky,  was  made  Ambas- 
sador to  Madrid.  The  Ministers  of  Prussia,  Prince 
Eulenberg  and  Count  Pourtales,  became  Ambassa- 
dors at  Vienna  and  Petrograd. 

During  my  stay  of  six  years  in  Bavaria  (1890- 
1896)  I  was  able  to  obtain  many  definite  impressions 
from  which  to  judge  the  exact  relations  between 
Germany  and  other  European  powers.  I  saw,  for 
instance,  that  France  was  eagerly  sought  after  by 
Germany  at  that  time,  and  her  representatives  were 
treated  with  exceptional  courtesy  at  Munich  as  well 
as  at  Berlin. 

German  diplomacy  very  much  feared  a  rap- 
prochement between  England  and  France.  As  for 
the  French  alliance  with  Russia,  the  cleverness  of 
our  representatives  in  Germany  eliminated  any  un- 


42     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

easiness.  Both  Counts  Chouvaloff  and  Osten-Sacken 
succeeded  little  by  little  in  instilling  into  the  German 
foreign  office  the  idea  that  this  alliance  served  as  a 
check  on  France  in  case  of  a  belligerent  attitude  on 
her  part  towards  Germany. 

The  Bavarian  aristocracy,  being,  as  a  general  rule, 
impoverished,  did  not  receive  or  entertain  much. 
This  was  however  entirely  made  up  for  by  her  liter- 
ary and  artistic  world,  which  liked  festivities  very 
much  and  entertained  accordingly.  This  artistic 
and  literary  world  was  divided  into  two  camps.  The 
first — and  the  minority — partisans  of  the  German 
Emperor,  bowed  before  Prussia ;  the  second,  admir- 
ers of  Bismarck,  although  fearing  Berlin,  made  be- 
lieve to  ignore  it  completely.  As  for  the  Bavarian 
peasants  they  hated  and  despised  the  Prussians. 
The  greatest  insult  was  to  call  a  man  "Pig  of  a 
Prussian,"  and  they  ever  referred  to  the  Germans 
as  "Pigs."  The  explanation  for  this  is  simple. 
The  Bavarian,  in  character,  is  diametrically  opposed 
to  the  Prussian,  for  where  the  Bavarian  is  simple 
and  as  good  natured  as  a  child,  the  Prussian  is  proud, 
overbearing  and  arrogant.  It  is  therefore  natural 
that  an  idea  gained  ground  outside  of  Germany  that 
Prussia  might  run  across  an  enemy  to  her  political 
conceptions  in  Bavaria.  This  idea  is  entirely  er- 
roneous. Imperialism  is  solidly  entrenched  in  the 
Bavarian  mind,  and  nothing  but  an  absolute  defeat 


BAVARIA  AND  PRUSSIA  AND  WILLIAM  II     43 

of  Prussia  will  change  the  Bavarian  belief  in  Prus- 
sia and  Prussian  power. 

In  order  to  make  the  relationship  quite  clear,  I 
can  make  use  of  a  trivial  example.  Let  us  suppose 
that  any  two  people  inhabit  the  same  house.  They 
have  two  separate  apartments,  but  share  the  same 
kitchen  with  but  one  cook  between  them.  It  is  obvi- 
ous that  continual  quarrels  will  arise,  but  if  the  house 
were  to  catch  fire  both  inhabitants  would  do  their 
utmost  to  extinguish  it.  It  is  thus  with  Prussia  and 
Bavaria.  In  1870-71,  during  the  French  campaign, 
the  Bavarians  contributed  greatly  to  German  vic- 
tories, winning  especially  those  of  Woerth  and 
Bazeilles.  In  the  present  great  war  the  Bavarians 
have  defended  and  attacked  the  most  exposed  and 
dangerous  positions,  and  fought  with  an  elan  which 
Prussia  itself  has  not  surpassed.  If  Prussia  is 
finally  and  completely  defeated  Bavaria  may  reassert 
herself  and  head  a  great  Roman  Catholic  federation 
in  Central  Europe. 


CHAPTER  III 

WILLIAM   II 

Personal  Impressions.     His   Character,   Qualities  and  Faults. 
Husband  and  Father,  Kaiser  and  Politician 

Emperor  William  is  a  man  of  an  extremely  complex 
and  difficult  nature.  In  the  opinion  of  some  people 
he  is  a  monster  in  human  form — especially  since  the 
outbreak  of  the  present  war — the  war  of  his  making. 
His  admirers,  on  the  other  hand,  place  a  halo  about 
him.  They  regard  him  as  a  great  monarch,  passion- 
ately desiring  the  best  for  his  people,  loyal  to  his 
friends,  and  even  most  kind  and  amiable.  These  two 
opinions — much  exaggerated — are  not  at  all  like  the 

realman - 

It  is  necessary  to  strip  William  II  of  Germany  of 
his  position,  and  power,  and  regard  him  merely  as 
a  man,  to  realize  his  faults  and  weaknesses,  and  to 
give  him  credit  for  his  good  qualities,  before  it  is  pos- 
sible to  paint  a  true  portrait  of  the  man  who  set  the 
world  ablaze.  I  knew  him  intimately  for  the  six 
years  that  I  was  attached  to  the  Russian  Embassy 
in  Berlin,  during  which  time,  I  of  course,  had  number- 
less talks  with  him,  many  of  which  were  of  a  confi- 
dential nature.     Therefore,  I  shall  portray  him  as  I 

44 


WILLIAM  II  45 

found  him,  and  will  try  and  impress  on  others  the 
impression  he  gave  me. 

Above  tJl  traits  in  his  character,  impulsiveness  is 
the  most  apparent.  He  suffers  from  it  to  such  an 
extent  that  it  is  a  malady.  On  the  impulse  of  the 
moment,  under  the  influence  of  his  surroundings,  he 
can  be  as  easily  led  towards  good  as  towards  evil. 
Also — by  an  adroit  use  of  his  mood  or  of  his  imme- 
diate circumstances  it  is  quite  easy  to  change  his 
whole  point  of  view.  Therefore  he  cannot  be  called 
stubborn.  The  man  who  wrote  in  the  Golden  Book 
at  Munich  ''Sic  volo — sic  jubeo,"  when  cleverly  flat- 
tered and  his  great  amour  propre  played  upon  by 
any  one  who  knows  his  peculiarities  and  character 
\.<  u,  can  be  made  to  change  his  decisions — often  to 
reverse  them  completely. 

Count  Osten-Sacken,  the  Russian  Ambassador  of 
my  day,  more  than  any  of  the  Diplomats  in  Berlin, 
had  the  gift  of  knowing  how  to  talk  to  him,  and  also 
how  to  influence  him  greatly.  An  excellent  illustra- 
tion of  this  may  be  given.  The  Krupp  yard  at  Kiel 
was  going  to  launch  a  Russian  battleship,  and  the 
Emperor  William  suddenly  announced  that  he  would 
attend  the  ceremony.  Consequently  our  Ambassa- 
dor and  his  suite  had  to  rush  off  to  Kiel.  The  Em- 
peror arrived  in  a  very  bad  humour,  owing  to  the 
fact  that  the  Emperor  Nicholas  had  gone  from  Petro- 
grad  direct  to  Darmstadt,  thus  quite  pointedly  avoid- 
ing an  interview  which  William  had  earnestly  sought. 


46     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Contrary  to  the  latter 's  habit,  he  did  not  shake  hands 
with  the  staff  of  our  Embassy — with  the  exception, 
of  course,  of  Count  Osten-Sacken.  He  merely 
greeted  the  others  with  a  stiff  military  salute,  a  very 
irritated  and  sombre  expression,  and  a  look  of  great 
anger  in  his  eyes, — an  aspect — which  as  a  pose — he 
knew  very  well  how  to  assume.  He  can  always 
"make  up"  for  his  parts,  and  is  an  excellent  actor. 
Behold  him  then  making  his  entrance  to  the  tent  re- 
served for  him.  After  the  ceremony  he  turned  to 
our  Ambassador  and  said  he  would  speak  very  seri- 
ously with  him  that  evening. 

That  night  a  dinner  was  given  by  his  brother, 
Prince  Henry  of  Prussia,  Grand  Admiral  of  the  Ger- 
man Fleet.  Afterwards  William  lighted  a  cigar, 
and  invited  Count  Osten-Sacken  to  sit  beside  him. 
At  the  same  time  he  beckoned  to  Chancellor  von 
Buelow  to  make  one  of  the  group.  His  conversation 
from  the  very  first  was  extremely  violent  in  charac- 
ter. The  Emperor  petulantly  complained  about  the 
way  he  was  treated  by  Nicholas  II,  and  said  he  was 
not  being  properly  recognized  in  Russia.  "I — who 
am  so  well  disposed  towards  you," — he  exclaimed. 
Then  he  launched  into  a  bitter  tirade  of  our  Minister 
of  Foreign  Affairs,  Count  Muravieff,  accusing  him 
of  directing  a  policy  that  was  contrary  to  the  com- 
mon understanding  and  relationship  between  Russia 
and  Germany.  Allowing  himself  to  be  more  and 
more  carried  away  by  his  own  rage,  he  went  so  far 


WILLIAM  II  47 

as  to  say  that — ''the  continuation  of  such  policy  on 
Russia's  part  would  most  certainly  have  the  most 
dire  results."  It  was  perfectly  plain  by  the  things 
he  said,  to  understand  he  threatened  a  definite  rup- 
ture between  us  and  Germany. 

Prince  von-Buelow— was  very  ill  at  ease.  Count 
Osten-Sacken,  however,  maintained  his  usual  sang- 
froid and  dignity;  and  when  William  asked  him  what 
he  had  to  say,  he  answered  with  a  smile, — ''Very 
little,  Sire.  All  that  you  have  said  to  me,  you  really 
cannot  believe.  Still  less  can  you  put  such  threats 
into  execution.  After  all  you  have  as  great  a  need 
of  us  as  we  have  of  you.  I  will  even  go  so  far  as  to 
say  that  it  is  you  who  need  our  support  the  most." 
Count  Osten-Sacken  then  reminded  him  that  the 
great  successes  of  his  grandfather — William  I — were 
due  to  the  intimate  relations  which  that  monarch 
always  maintained  with  the  Russian  Empire.  He 
also  mentioned  the  political  "will"  of  the  old 
Sovereign,  and  the  last  words  regarding  Russia 
William  I  uttered  on  his  death-bed.  Seeing  that  the 
Emperor  was  gradually  becoming  calmer,  Count 
Osten-Sacken  tried  to  lead  the  conversation  away 
from  the  dangerous  ground  on  which  the  Emperor 
was  treading.  He  told  several  historic  anecdotes, 
which  always  pleased  the  Emperor,  and  finally  the 
interview  ended  in  reciprocal  joking.  William  burst 
into  fits  of  laughter  at  our  Ambassador's  stories,  and 
his  temper  disappeared  as  mist  before  the   sun! 


48     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

When  the  party  broke  up  each  member  of  our  Em- 
bassy was  amiably  addressed  by  the  Emperor,  and 
he  left  very  much  pleased  with  the  entire  evening, 
expressing  himself  as  entirely  satisfied  with  his  talk 
with  Count  Osten-Sacken. 

To  relate  another  such  incident — William  wished 
the  Reichstag  to  pass  a  law  increasing  the  effectives 
for  military  duty.  The  Party  of  the  Right  had 
shown  itself  recalcitrant  towards  this  measure,  and 
joined  itself  with  the  Party  of  the  Extreme  Left. 
The  Emperor  was  furious  about  it.  He  considered 
the  members  of  the  Party  of  the  Right — who  be- 
longed chiefly  to  the  Prussian  aristocracy  and  were 
known  as  ''the  Junkers," — as  wax  between  his  fin- 
gers. He  promptly  eliminated  from  the  Court  list 
forty  of  the  highest  names  in  the  Prussian  aristoc- 
racy, and  wanted  to  make  a  speech  of  a  most  violent 
character  at  the  opening  of  the  Reichstag.  Prince 
von  Hohenlohe,  then  Chancellor  of  the  Empire  and 
the  Empress'  uncle,  had  done  everything  he  could  to 
dissuade  the  Emperor  from  making  this  speech. 
Finally  William  had  promised  he  would  confine  him- 
self to  reading  the  Imperial  Speech,  as  prepared  by 
the  Chancellor.  I  was  present  at  the  opening  of  the 
Reichstag.  The  ceremony  was  carried  through  ac- 
cording to  custom,  in  the  White  Hall  of  the  Royal 
Palace  in  Berlin,  as  the  Emperor  never  puts  his  foot 
in  the  Reichstag.  William  ascended  the  throne,  put 
on  his  helmet  and  read  the  speech.    I  knew  from 


WILLIAM  II  49 

Prince  von  Hohenlohe  himself  what  the  Emperor 
had  promised.  Imagine  then  my  stupefaction,  and 
that  of  those  who  knew,  when  William,  having  taken 
off  his  helmet — thus  showing  that  the  official  opening 
was  ended — began  a  most  violent  address  to  the 
members !  I  was  far  from  being  the  only  one  pres- 
ent in  that  crowded  hall  who  was  astounded.  The 
short  statured  Imperial  Chancellor,  who  was  stand- 
ing on  the  steps  of  the  throne,  turned  towards  Wil- 
liam with  an  expression  of  horrified  surprise.  I 
learnt  later  from  the  lips  of  Prince  von  Hohenlohe, 
that,  on  descending  from  the  throne — the  Emperor 
said  to  him — "What  would  you,  Uncle  Chlodwig,  I 
could  not  keep  it  in!" 

The  most  vitally  important  political  and  diplo- 
matic decisions  were  very  often  determined  in  the 
most  thoughtless  way  by  the  Emperor,  owing  to  a 
sudden  and  inexplicable  impulse  of  the  moment. 
The  famous  telegram  to  President  Kruger  in  South 
Africa,  and  the  expedition  to  China,  which  gained 
Kiao-Tchao  for  Germany — were  both  determined  by 
the  Emperor  personally  in  this  characteristically 
quick  way  of  his.  Owing  to  the  assassination  of  the 
German  Minister  at  Peking,  the  German  Govern- 
ment had,  of  course,  to  take  severe  measures,  but  the 
German  diplomats  had  previous  to  that  been  plan- 
ning what  was  to  be  done  in  the  Chinese  question. 
Having  learned  from  Admiral  Tirpitz,  Minister  of 
the  Imperial  Navy,  that  in  his  time  Prince  Bismarck 


50     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

had  dreamt  of  extensive  operations  in  China,  and  had 
actually  in  1868  fixed  upon  Kiao-Tchao  as  the  neces- 
sary "jumping  off"  place,  William  decided  that  the 
moment  was  most  propitious  in  which  to  carry  out 
the  ideas  of  the  Iron  Chancellor.     He  had  no  sooner 
jumped  to  this  conclusion  than  he  sent  for  Prince 
Hohenlohe,  and  ordered  him  to  obtain  all  the  details 
of  the  matter.     This  order  was  carried  out  in  haste, 
but  at  the  same  time,  the  Chancellor  added  to  the 
official  archives  on  the  subject  some  suggestions  of 
his  own.     These  were  to  the  effect  that  he  was  afraid 
of  serious  complications  with  Russia  if  Germany 
undertook  any  armed  intervention  in  China,  because 
Kiao-Tchao  was  considered  as  lying  within  the  zone 
of  Russian  influence  and  protection.     The  Emperor 
sent  back  the  hints  to  Prince  Hohenlohe  with  the 
laconic  notation  "Ochsen"  (Idiots)  written  on  them 
in  his  own  red  pencil,  and  within  ten  minutes  sent  a 
personal  telegram  to  Nicholas  II,  asking  him  for 
authority  to  occupy  Kiao-Tchao  with  a  squadron  as  a 
coercive  measure,  as  Russia  was  the  only  foreign 
power  possessing  anchorage  and  harbour  rights  for 
men-of-war  in  those  waters.     Nicholas  received  this 
message  very  late  that  night,  and  at  once  sent  for 
the  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  Count  Muravieff, 
who,  casual  as  usual,  and  quite  unaware  of  the  grav- 
ity of  the  situation  and  completely  ignorant  of  the 
Russian  agreements  with  China,  told  his  Imperial 
Master  that  we  had  nothing  whatsoever  to  do  with 


WILLIAM  II  51 

Kiao-Tchao.  Nicholas  then  telegraphed  to  the  Ger- 
man Emperor,  as  usual  in  English, — "  Unfortunately 
I  can  neither  authorize  you,  nor  prevent  you  entering 
Kiao-Tchao  bay,  for  I  am  this  moment  informed  that 
we  have  no  rights  in  those  waters."  When  he  re- 
ceived this  message,  the  German  Emperor  hurriedly 
sent  for  Prince  von  Hohenlohe,  triumphantly  showed 
him  the  message  from  Nicholas,  and  telegraphed  his 
order  to  the  German  squadron  in  Far  Eastern  waters 
to  seize  Kiao-Tchao  at  once. 

Meanwhile  in  Petrograd  the  day  following  his 
sending  of  that  telegram  to  William,  Nicholas  ob- 
tained a  report  on  the  matter  from  Admiral  TirhofT, 
Minister  of  the  Russian  Navy,  and  then  showed  him 
his  telegraphic  correspondence  with  William.  The 
Admiral  was  aghast,  for,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  our 
special  rights  in  Kiao-Tchao  waters  were  incontest- 
able owing  to  the  explicit  terms  of  one  of  our  treaties 
with  China.  An  order  was  hastily  dispatched  to 
Count  Osten-Sacken  in  Berlin  to  explain  to  the  Ger- 
man Emperor  the  mistake  that  had  been  inadvert- 
ently made.  Our  Ambassador  did  so,  but  it  was  in 
vain.  The  German  Emperor,  highly  elated,  said  to 
our  Ambassador — "I  hold  Nikky's  telegram  and  I 
have  already  given  my  orders.  My  squadron  is  by 
now  in  Kiao-Tchao  Bay — it  is  there  and  there  it  shall 
stay.  I  cannot  make  myself  ridiculous,  and  I  will 
not!"  William  had  won  the  game  which  started 
entirely  on  his  own  initiative  and  against  the  advifee 


52     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

of  the  Chancellor,  but  as  is  quite  evident,  he  had 
acted  absolutely  on  the  impulse  of  the  moment,  with- 
out having  carefully  thought  over  the  plan  or  its  pos- 
sible consequences. 

His  telegram  to  President  Kruger  was  far  less  for- 
tunate, but  it  was  sent  in  exactly  the  same  way, 
and  was  the  result  of  impulse  pure  and  simple.  The 
message  was  sent  without  his  asking  any  advice  from 
his  Ministers.  The  Boers  were  greatly  encouraged, 
and  believed  they  could  obtain  support  from  William, 
which  he  was  quite  unable  to  give  them.  Thus  both 
Russian  and  British  relations  with  Germany  were 
fatally  disturbed  for  a  long  time  by  the  vanity  and 
impulsiveness  of  the  German  Emperor. 

His  moods  were  extraordinarily  variable,  and  re- 
sponded to  his  immediate  surroundings  with  extreme 
rapidity.  I  remember  on  one  occasion  he  had  asked 
himself  to  dinner  at  our  Embassy.  He  had  arrived 
to  the  minute  and  in  exceedingly  good  humour.  Dur- 
ing the  meal  he  told  stories,  related  anecdotes,  and 
lifted  his  glass  to  each  one  of  us  in  turn.  Suddenly 
his  A.  D.  C.  brought  him  a  telegram.  William  be- 
came very  pale,  and  addressing  Count  Osten-Sacken, 
said : 

"I  have  just  received  the  news  of  an  attempt  made 
in  Belgium  on  the  life  of  my  Uncle  Edward.  Fortu- 
nately he  was  not  hurt." 

(The  Emperor's  reference  to  his  Uncle  Edward 
meant  the  late  King  of  England.) 


WILLIAM  II  53 

All  through  the  rest  of  the  dinner  the  Emperor 
was  depressed  and  very  grave,  and  all  the  efforts  of 
Count  Osten-Sacken  to  cheer  him  up  were  in  vain. 
On  leaving  the  table  William  asked  for  a  telegraphic 
form  and  pen  and  ink,  and  dispatched  a  message 
to  Edward  VII. 

It  was  the  custom  when  the  Emperor  dined  at  the 
Embassy  to  have  an  entertainment  of  sorts  for  him. 
On  this  occasion  I  had  advised  our  Ambassador  to 
invite  a  Bavarian  comedy  artist — Dreher  by  name, — 
whom  the  Emperor  liked  very  much.  This  man, 
costumed  as  the  Prince  of  Hell,  was  awaiting  the  end 
of  the  dinner  in  one  of  the  Embassy  drawing  rooms. 
Count  Osten-Sacken  was  naturally  very  much  em- 
barrassed by  this.  WTilliam  did  not  seem  in  any 
mood  to  listen  to  Dreher 's  jokes.  WThen  the  Em- 
peror had  written  his  telegram,  and  lighted  his  cigar, 
the  Ambassador  after  some  hesitation  decided  to 
mention  Dreher  to  him.  He  said,  smiling — "Sire, 
there  is  an  exotic  prince  here  who  desires  the  honour 
of  being  presented  to  you. ' '  The  Emperor,  grave  as 
ever,  with  his  thoughts  elsewhere,  answered — "It 
must  be  a  Caucasian  Prince!  Have  him  in!"  But 
when  Dreher  appeared  with  his  fantastic  dress  and 
false  nose,  the  Emperor  shouted — "Ah,  it  is  my 
friend  Dreher!"  As  the  Bavarian  comedian  went 
on  with  his  stories  and  jokes,  many  of  which  were 
distinctly  gross  in  character — a  total  transformation 
took   place    in    the    Emperor.     His    gloom    and    ill 


54     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

humour  vanished,  and  Edward  VII  was  completely 
forgotten ! 

When  he  left  the  Embassy  William  squeezed  my 
hand  heartily  and  said — "My  dear  Schelking,  I  owe 
you  especial  thanks,  for  I  have  learnt  that  it  was  at 
your  suggestion  that  Dreher  was  on  hand,  and  I  have 
been  royally  amused!" 

This  is  a  small  matter,  no  doubt,  but  it  shows  the 
working  of  William's  mind — at  one  minute  deeply 
distressed  by  a  telegram,  and  probably  wondering 
how  soon  his  turn  would  come  to  be  attacked  by  an 
assassin,  and  the  next  minute  cheerfully  and  enthu- 
siastically enjoying  the  coarse  and  even  lewd  jests 
of  a  buffoon — all  thought  of  the  more  deadly  and 
serious  matter  completely  forgotten! 

The  following  episode  is  very  interesting  as  it  illus- 
trates the  instinctive  irritation  felt  by  William  for 
England.  The  Emperor  had  called  one  morning  on 
the  British  Ambassador, — Sir  Frank  Lascelles,  who 
it  is  necessary  to  mention  was  never  up  before  noon, 
as  he  worked  very  late  at  night.  William  called  at 
eleven  in  the  morning  and  went  straight  in  to  the  bed- 
room of  the  Ambassador.  The  latter  woke  up  and 
was  greatly  astonished  at  seeing  the  Emperor  before 
him.  William  started  a  political  conversation  which 
did  not  at  all  please  Sir  Frank  Lascelles,  who  cour- 
teously contradicted  him  on  certain  points.  The 
Emperor  suddenly  lost  his  temper  and  shouted  at 
the  British  Ambassador, — "You  will  never  change 


WILLIAM  II  55 

my  opinion  as  you  are  only  an  Englishman.  I  am  an 
Englishman  plus  German.  This  great  advantage 
which  I  possess,  you  can  never  get  by  any  means. ' ' 

The  Emperor  William  talks  German  with  a  strong 
English  accent,  and  corresponds  in  English  rather 
than  in  German.  All  his  correspondence  with 
Nicholas  II  was  kept  up  in  English. 

Like  all  Prussians,  the  Emperor  at  heart  is  cruel, 
— one  has  only  to  remember  for  instance  his  address 
to  the  German  troops  which  were  sent  to  China.  His 
personal  orders  were — "  Pardon  wird  nicht  gegeben" 
(give  no  quarter).  Yet  on  other  occasions,  the  Em- 
peror seemed  at  times  to  be  governed  by  kindly  im- 
pulses. For  instance,  when  on  one  of  his  daily 
drives  in  Berlin,  he  saw  the  widow  of  one  of  his  old 
Professors  at  Bonn  University, — he  got  out  of  his 
carriage,  rushed  up  to  the  old  lady,  and  exclaimed 
excitedly — "You  dare  to  come  to  Berlin  without  pay- 
ing me  a  visit?  By  Imperial  order  you  will  have 
luncheon  with  me  today  at  the  palace ! ' ' 

A  compatriot  of  mine,  Countess  Kleinmichel,  who 
was  present  at  that  luncheon,  told  me  that  the  Em- 
peror paid  especial  attention  to  the  old  lady.  He 
searched  his  memory  for  events  of  his  days  at  Bonn, 
which  he  told  with  great  gusto,  turning  to  the 
Countess  and  saying: — "If  you  only  knew  the  good 
sandwiches  she  used  to  give  me  when  I  was  a  stu- 
dent!" To  hear  the  Emperor  talk  in  this  way,  it 
was  incredible  to  think  that  the  speaker  was  the 


56     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

same  man  who  had  deliberately  given  the  military 
such  orders  regarding  the  Chinese,  and  who,  finally 
did  not  flinch  from  beginning  the  greatest  and  most 
awful  war  in  all  history. 

Aiiother  characteristic  of  the  German  Emperor  is 
the  conviction  of  his  omnipotence.  When  he  wrote 
at  Munich  "Sic  volo — sic  jubeo" — it  was  not  a  pose 
of  the  moment.  He  expressed  in  those  few  words 
his  firm  conviction  about  himself.  Yet  after  having 
named  Herr  von  Buelow  Secretary  of  State  for 
Foreign  Affairs,  the  Emperor  said  to  Count  Osten- 
Sacken  that  he  was  happy  to  have  at  last  succeeded 
in  having  at  the  head  of  his  diplomats,  a  personal 
friend.  And  when  Count  Osten-Sacken,  expressing 
his  astonishment,  remarked  that  he  had  every  oppor- 
tunity of  making  such  an  appointment  before,  Wil- 
liam replied — "Ah!  so  you  believe,  but  it  was  not  so 
easy  as  you  think."  This  from  a  monarch,  whose 
omnipotence  is  celebrated,  is  a  ridiculous  statement. 

In  religious  matters,  the  Emperor  has  faith,  but 
only  in  his  own  way.  His  God  is  above  all  the  God 
of  Battles!  He  believes  himself  to  be  the  direct 
emissary  of  God  to  mankind  all  over  the  world.  He 
deems  himself  the  intermediary  indeed — between 
God  and  his  people,  and  destined  to  be  the  bringer  of 
happiness  first  of  all  to  Prussia,  then  to  Germany 
next,  and  after  that  as  a  natural  consequence  to  the 
whole  globe.  I  have  personally  seen  him  on  several 
occasions  praying  at  church,  and  my  impression  is 


WILLIAM  II  57 

that  he  prayed  fervently  and  earnestly,  and  not  for  a 
pose,  as  he  did  almost  everything  else.  In  his  trav- 
els by  land  and  sea,  he  always  delivered  sermons  in 
person  to  the  personnel  of  his  entourage.  Witnesses 
have  told  me  that  the  Emperor  seemed  to  officiate  on 
these  occasions  as  a  Pontiff  or  Prince  of  the  Church, 
and  gave  evidence  of  a  great  knowledge  of  the  Bible. 
He  knew  very  well  how  to  quoTe~~f rom  it  in  such  a 
way  as  to  make  it  appear  that  everything  he  did  had 
biblical  authority ! 

The  Emperor  is  an  Imperialist  even  in  the  bosom 
of  his  family.  When  the  Empress  appears  at  recep- 
tions the  Emperor  always  approaches  her  and  makes 
a  deep  bow.  But  it  can  be  assumed  that  he  does  not 
do  this  out  of  respect  for  the  mother  of  his  children. 
NO ! — He  salutes  her  who  has  the  divine  honour  of 
sharing  his  throne,  and  who  acts  as  an  excellent  re- 
flector of  the  divine  rays  which  emanate  from  him! 

He  is  an  absolute  autocrat  over  his  children.  His 
only  daughter,  the  Princess  Victoria,  was  an  excep- 
tion. For  her  he  had  every  tenderness  and  spoilt 
her  in  every  way  possible.  The  education  of  his  sons 
was  a  very  careful  one.  He  himself  chose  their  pro- 
fessors. Once  his  choice  was  made,  he  gave  these 
men  a  free  band  with  their  royal  charges. 

Baron  von  Pritzelvitz,  whom  I  knew  intimately  at 
Munich,  where  he  was  Military  Attache  of  Prussia, 
and  later  favourite  A.D.C.  to  H.I.M.,  was  nominated 
as  chief  supervisor  of  the  Crown  Prince's  education. 


58     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

He  told  me  that  for  over  a  year  after  his  appoint- 
ment the  Emperor  never  said  one  word  regarding 
the  Crown  Prince,  although  he  had  had  any  number 
of  opportunities  for  so  doing.  One  day,  however, 
at  a  Royal  Hunt,  Pritzelvitz  having  drawn  a  stand 
number  next  to  the  Emperor,  the  latter  said  to  him — 
"You  are  doubtless  astonished  that  I  never  speak 
to  you  of  my  son  ?  I  am  very  much  pleased  with  you, 
but  if  I  have  not  spoken  it  was  in  order  not  to  inter- 
fere with  the  line  of  education  that  you  were  follow- 
ing. I  wish  that  the  Crown  Prince  be  above  all 
things  a  Man  with  his  own  character.  I  do  not  wish 
him  to  be  a  copy  of  William  II.  When  he  comes  to 
the  throne  he  will  see  that  which  I  have  done  well, 
and  also  anything  that  I  have  done  badly,  and  he 
will  then  be  able  to  act  according  to  his  own  best 
ideas  and  ideals." 

This  fine  profession  of  faith  did  not  prevent  the 
Emperor,  when  in  due  course  the  Crown  Prince  be- 
gan to  shown  signs  of  "his  own  character,"  from 
punishing  him  severely  on  many  occasions  by  send- 
ing him  to  command  a  regiment  at  Dantzig,  and  for- 
bidding him  to  be  seen  in  Berlin  without  his  espe- 
cial permission. 

The  Emperor  pretends  to  love  the  Arts  devotedly. 
He  believes  himself  to  be  a  gifted  musician  and  a 
very  good  artist  with  brush  and  pencil.  But  his 
love  of  the  Arts  is  like  everything  else.  Music, 
painting,  drama  and  poetry  serve  him  only  in  so  far 


WILLIAM  II  59 

as  they  can  be  made  useful  to  advancing  his  political 
ideas.     The  famous  song  "Aegir"  was  written  as 
propaganda  for  the  Imperial  German  Navy.     The 
pictures  that  he  orders  represent  only  the  brilliant 
and  successful   scenes   from  German  history.     He 
especially  favours  chauvinism — or  excessive  patriot- 
ism, preferring  those  poems  or  dramas  dealing  with 
the  glory  of  Prussia  in  general  and  of  the  Hohen- 
zollern  in  particular.     He  ordered  an  opera  to  be 
written  by  Leoncavallo  on  the  subject  of  Roland  of 
Berlin,  an  opera  by  the  way,  which  Leoncavallo  could 
never  finish.     From  the  Polish  painter  Baron  Kos- 
sak,  he  ordered  a  picture  representing,  and  glorify- 
ing the  city  of  Marienburg.     He  forgot,  or  seemed 
to  forget,  that  it  was  especially  at  Marienburg  that 
the  Poles  had  suffered  so  terribly,  and  when  Baron 
Kossak,  furious  at  the  idea,  handed  in  his  resigna- 
tion as  Artist  to  the  Imperial  Court,  the  Emperor 
still  did  not  understand  the  faux  pas  that  he  had 
made,  and  treated  Kossak  as  a  "pig  and  an  ingrate." 
In  the  musical  world,  he  went  so  far  as  to  correct 
Weber.    When  he  returned  from  his  voyage  to  the 
Orient,  he  personally  assisted  in  the  staging  of  the 
opera  "Oberon"  at  Wiesbaden.     The  Emperor  him- 
self designed  the  decorations,  which  were,  most  of 
them,  in  execrably  bad  taste  and  vulgar,  and  he  re- 
wrote the  finale  of  the  Opera,  introducing,  no  one 
knows  why — the  Emperor  Frederick  Barbarossa  to 
sing  of  the  glories  of  his  ancestors. 


60     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

One  of  the  most  beautiful  alleys  in  the  park  at 
Berlin  is  completely  spoilt  by  a  series  of  monuments, 
each  one  more  hideous  than  the  other,  representing 
all  the  sovereigns  of  the  House  of  Hohenzollern. 
Finally  the  Zoological  gardens  at  Berlin  (Tier- 
garten)  had  almost  as  many  statues  as  trees !  Even 
the  inhabitants  of  Berlin — who  have  no  taste  at  all 
for  the  arts — were  frightened  at  the  way  in  which 
the  Emperor  was  defacing  their  city  with  his  horrible 
and  fantastic  conceptions  of  beauty.  The  Emperor 
did  not  care.  On  the  contrary,  not  content  with 
"ornamenting"  his  good  city  of  Berlin  he  gave  New 
York  a  statue  of  Frederick  the  Great,  and  presented 
Constantinople  with  a  monumental  and  frightful 
fountain.  At  Petrograd  he  built  an  embassy  that 
looked  more  like  a  barracks  than  anything  else,  and 
he  ordered  to  be  planted  on  the  roof  two  enormous 
Teutons  of  warlike  mien,  resting  on  their  swords, 
which  were  intended  to  portray  the  strength  of  Ger- 
many. At  the  beginning  of  the  war  the  people 
pulled  these  two  horrors  down  and  threw  them  into 
a  canal! 

The  Emperor  pretends  to  know  and  to  understand 
everything.  It  must,  however,  be  admitted  that  he 
is  very  well  versed  in  most  matters,  and  that  his 
memory  is  prodigious.  When  I  paid  my  farewell 
visit  to  him, — having  been  appointed  Councillor  to 
The  Hague, — he  gave  me  the  whole  history  of  Dutch 
music  and  choral  chants.     He  was  in  correspondence 


WILLIAM  II  61 

with  Cunimberti,  the  famous  Italian  naval  con- 
structor, and  confided  to  him  his  ideas  and  plans  for 
battleships.  The  Italian  engineer  was  certain  these 
drawings  had  been  made  by  a  German  specialist,  and 
was  most  astonished  when  he  was  informed  that  the 
draftsman  was  the  Emperor  himself ! 

His  family  life  was  an  exemplary  one,  although 
often  he  is  said  to  have  had  mistresses. .  For  a  time 
Countess  Goertz  was  named  as  such.  She  was  the 
wife  of  one  of  the  German  nobles  of  high  standing, 
who  was  a  great  personal  friend  of  the  Emperor's. 
The  Count  was  an  amateur  sculptor — one  of  his 
works  being  in  the  Tiergarten  at  Berlin.  As  far  as 
I  am  concerned  I  doubt  these  insinuations.  The 
Countess  Goertz  was  exceedingly  handsome  but  suf- 
fered from  an  incurable  disease,  and,  while  the  Em- 
peror was  very  intimate  in  their  household,  I  do  not 
think  there  was  anything  more  than  a  platonic 
friendship  between  her  and  the  Emperor. 

As  the  Empress  had  aged  greatly  and  the  Emperor 
still  conserved  his  air  of  youth  and  youthful  vigour — 
the  masses  ever  sought  a  reason  for  his  apparent 
aloofness  to  women  as  far  as  his  passions  were  con- 
cerned. Then  the  famous — or  rather  infamous — 
Eulenberg  scandal  broke  out  and  to  it  the  Emperor's 
name  was  instantly  attached.  Prince  Eulenberg, 
whom  I  knew  very  well  at  Munieh,  where  he  was 
Prussian  Minister  and  later  Ambassador  to  Vienna 
— was  publicly  accused  of  homo-sexuality.     He  was 


62     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

denounced  by  his  Chief  Huntsman.  The  Judicial 
address  in  the  case  established  details  which  were 
exceedingly  curious.  It  was  learned  then  that 
Prince  Eulenberg  was  the  leader  of  a  society  known 
as  "The  Knights  of  the  Round  Table."  Among  the 
members  of  this  Society  were  men  bearing  the  high- 
est names  in  the  German  Empire ;  for  instance  .  .  . 
both  Princes  Hohenhau — sons  of  Field  Marshal 
Prince  Albert  of  Prussia,  the  issue  of  his  morganatic 
marriage ;  Baron  von  Wedell,  who  had  been  Attache 
to  the  Empress  Frederick,  a  Frenchman,  M.  Lecomte, 
Councillor  of  the  French  Embassy  in  Berlin,  and 
many  others.  It  was  also  learned  that  the  Emperor 
himself — who  honoured  Prince  Eulenberg  with  a 
friendship  of  exceptional  intimacy — very  often  took 
part  in  the  meetings  of  this  society.  All  its  mem- 
bers were  known  by  nicknames.  The  Emperor  was 
known  as  "Cheri."  William  did  not  try  to  hush  the 
matter  up  knowing  very  well  that  if  judicial  proceed- 
ings had  not  taken  place,  his  name  would  have  been 
even  more  entangled  than  it  was.  Hence  the  trial 
took  place.  Prince  Eulenberg — broken  and  ill — was 
brought  into  court  on  a  stretcher.  Finally,  although 
the  enquiry  could  not  be  brought  to  a  conclusion  as 
it  was  declared  that  Prince  Eulenberg  could  not  be 
further  examined  owing  to  the  state  of  his  health, 
the  Hohenhau  brothers  lost  their  commands  in  the 
army  and  were  exiled  to  their  country  estates; 
Baron  von  Wedell  was  also  exiled :  and  M.  Lecomte 


WILLIAM  II  63 

was  transferred  to  Persia,  where  he  was,  for  a  time, 
the  French  Minister. 

The  whole  details  of  this  affair  have  remained  a 
secret,  even  to  the  present  day. 

Prince  Eulonberg,  married  to  a  Swedish  Countess, 
had  had  six  children  by  her.  Those  who  knew  the 
Countess  knew  of  a  certainty  that  her  children  were 
fathered  by  Eulonberg.  The  Prince  had  two  hob- 
bies— the  Emperor  and  music.  His  family  life  was 
most  exemplary.  Yet  the  accusations  of  his  Chief 
Huntsman  were  supposed  to  be  undeniable  facts. 
Be  that  as  it  may,  the  whole  affair  did  not  advance 
the  prestige  and  popularity  of  the  German  Emperor. 

As  everything  in  this  world  is  sooner  or  later  for- 
gotten, the  German  people  gradually  let  this  matter 
drop  into  oblivion  and  there  it  has  remained. 

Of  all  the  foreign  monarchs,  William  II  esteemed 
above  all  others  Queen  Victoria  of  England  and  had 
a  very  deep  affection  for  her.  When  speaking  of 
her  to  Count  Osten-Sacken  he  said:  "The  greatest 
statesman  of  Europe  today  is  my  grandmother." 

He  did  not  in  the  least  entertain  the  same  senti- 
ments towards  Edward  VII,  as  he  appreciated  full 
well  that  in  the  person  of  the  King  of  England  he  had 
a  very  dangerous  adversary  on  the  checkerboard  of 
the  world. 

I  have  already  mentioned  the  fear  with  which 
Alexander  III  of  Eussia  had  inspired  him  and  also 
his  relations  with  Nicholas  II. 


64     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

He  venerated  the  old  Emperor  Franz-Joseph  of 
Austria-Hungary. 

The  murdered  Archduke  of  Austria  was  not  sym- 
pathetic to  him  in  the  beginning",  but  later — for  politi- 
cal reasons — he  formed  ties  of  intimacy  with  him. 
It  is  said — and  not  without  reason — that  only  a  short 
time  before  the  assassination  of  the  Archduke,  in  an 
interview  that  he  had  with  him  in  one  of  his  castles, 
the  German  Monarch  sanctioned  the  bellicose  politics 
of  the  Habsburg  Empire  toward  Serbia.  It  is  here, 
therefore,  that  the  date  of  the  European  War  was 
really  first  decided  on. 

In  his  foreign  policy  William  regarded  only  one 
nation  with  an  absolutely  implacable  hatred — Eng- 
land! He  deemed  this  Power  everywhere  in  his 
way,  thwarting  and  blocking  him  by  every  road  he 
essayed,  commercial,  colonial  and  political.  All  his 
diplomacy  was  designed  to  fight  this  one  enemy.  He 
swallowed  all  the  troubles  Nicholas  II  made  in  order 
to  have  Russia  in  the  game  that  he  intended  to 
play.  He  always  hoped  to  be  able  to  thrust  Rus- 
sia into  some  serious  complication  with  Great 
Britain. 

Once,  for  instance  ...  we  Russians  were  trying 
out  a  new  method  of  general  mobilization  of  a 
brigade  near  the  Afghan  frontier.  William  rushed 
at  once  to  our  Embassy  in  the  hope  that  this  was  the 
beginning  of  a  mobilization  that  would  have  the  grav- 
est results.    He  assured  Count  Osten-Sacken  that 


COUNT     OSTI'N   SACKF.N 


WILLIAM  II  65 

he  was  even  then  ready  to  offer  Russia  two  army 
corps  for  an  eventual  campaign  against  Great 
Britain  in  India. 

The  Emperor's  feelings  towards  England  dictated 
his  policy  with  France.  The  ambassadors  of  the 
French  Republic  were  objects  of  his  special  atten- 
tions. Every  French  artist — painter — musician — 
or  writer — found  an  exceptionally  warm  welcome  at 
the  Court  of  Berlin.  At  the  opening  of  the  Kiel 
Canal,  when  French  warships  were  anchored  for  the 
first  time  in  history  side  by  side  with  German  ships, 
the  admiral  and  officers  of  the  French  squadron  were 
especially  feted. 

Prior  to  the  expedition  to  China  against  the 
Boxers,  in  which  France  took  an  equal  part,  the  Em- 
peror was  delighted  at  the  order  of  the  President  of 
the  French  Republic — placing  the  French  military 
expedition  under  German  command — that  of  Count 
von  Waldersee.  The  Emperor  cherished  the  project 
of  an  Entente  between  France  and  Russia  directly 
aimed  at  England.  But  even  in  his  relations  with 
France,  his  character,  impetuous  and  ever  changing 
— was  a  fatal  bar.  When  the  Government  of  the 
French  Republic  did  not  fall  in  with  his  desires  and 
ideas,  he  forgot  his  political  programme  and  made 
his  western  neighbours  all  kinds  of  more  or  less  seri- 
ous trouble.  He  spoiled  his  own  game  completely 
after  the  Russo-Japanese  War  by  provoking  the 
Tangiers  incident. 


66     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Russia — the  ally  of  France — had  only  just 
emerged  from  a  war  which  had  exhausted  her 
strength.  The  Emperor  William  thought  the  time 
favourable  to  blackmail  France,  who  had  just  con- 
cluded a  treaty  with  England  which  recognized  the 
right  of  Great  Britain  in  Egypt  and  renounced  her 
exclusive  fishing  rights  in  Newfoundland,  originally 
granted  by  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht.  In  return,  the 
British  Cabinet  recognized  the  exclusive  rights  of 
France  in  Morocco.  Although  Germany  was  only 
represented  in  the  Empire  of  the  Scherif  by  four 
Germans, — the  Mannesheim  brothers — William  de- 
manded his  share  of  commerce  in  Morocco.  Impul- 
sively, as  usual,  he  decided  to  apply  for  his  rights  in 
person  and  went  to  Tangiers  on  his  yacht — the  Ho- 
henzollern — escorted  by  a  light  German  flotilla  of 
armoured  cruisers  and  destroyers.  I  was  in  Paris 
at  the  time  and  all  political  circles  were  very  nerv- 
ous. The  intervention  of  Germany  in  Morocco  was 
considered  by  all  as  direct  provocation  to  France, 
who  was  in  no  way  prepared  for  a  war.  A  serious 
diplomatic  reverse  very  painful  to  the  amour- 
propre  of  France  was  foreseen.  I  remember  one 
day  when  I  was  in  the  Chamber  of  Deputies,  some 
one  interpellated  the  President  of  the  Council — Mr. 
Rouvier — as  to  what  the  whole  affair  meant.  Rou- 
vier,  scarlet  in  the  face,  and  deeply  moved,  shouted 
very  loudly :     "What  do  I  know  of  it !    If  these  pigs 


WILLIAM  II  67 

wish  it  they  can  enter  Champagne  as  though  entering 
butter." 

Suddenly^  however,  two  or  three  days  before  the 
disembarking/of  the  Emperor  William  at  Tangiers, 
Edward  VII  (appeared  incognito  in  Paris.  Notwith- 
standing the  quasi^private  nature  of  his  visit,  the 
English  Monarch  naturally  received  the  French 
statesmen  and  conferred  at  great  length  with  them. 

In  the  evening,  the  President  of  the  Kepublic  gave 
him  a  gala  dinner,  followed  by  a  reception,  to  which 
were  asked — among  others — all  the  members  of  the 
Corps  Diplomatique  in  Paris.  King  Edward  held  a 
small  reception  after  dinner  and  I  have  the  details 
of  what  was  said  from  one  of  the  men  who  were 
actually  present. 

Approaching  Prince  Radolin, .German  Ambassador 
to  France,  Edward  VII  commenced  a  conversation 
with  him  on  inconsequential  matters.  He  asked 
after  the  health  of  the  Princess  Radolin  and  dis- 
cussed the  delights  of  Parisian  life,  etc.  .  .  .  Sud- 
denly and  brusquely  his  voice  changed  and  he  said 
to  the  Prince  with  great  intensity  of  feeling : 

"My  nephew  is  making  a  little  trip  to  Tangiers. 
I  would  not  have  it  happen  that  European  complica- 
tions ensue.  And,  moreover  you  know,  behind 
France,  he  will  find  me.  A  man  warned  is  worth 
two  men." 

I  was  told  that  after  these  few  words  from  King 


68     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Edward,  Prince  Radolin  appeared  stricken  by  light- 
ning and  rushed  from  the  Elysee  to  notify  his  master 
of  the  King's  words. 

William  refrained  most  carefully  from  even  put- 
ting his  feet  ashore  on  Moroccan  soil  and  received 
the  Moroccan  authorities  on  board  the  Hohenzollern 
in  the  offing  of  Tangier  harbour. 

The  Algiers  Conference  followed  and  France 
issued  from  it  without  any  humiliation  whatsoever. 

It  may  be  asked,  therefore,  whether  as  William  in 
1904  altered  his  political  scheme  against  France 
solely  because  of  the  intervention  of  Edward  VII, 
although  at  that  time  Russia  was  completely  ex- 
hausted, the  Emperor  would  have  dared  to  encourage 
the  Austro-Hungarian  ultimatum  to  Serbia,  and  by 
so  doing  start  the  European  War,  had  he  known  that 
England  would  join  France  and  Russia? 

It  may,  however,  be  as  well  to  add  that  the  sudden 
departure  of  the  German  Emperor — owing  to  his 
diplomatic  failure — lost  him  the  few  strong  adher- 
ents he  had.  William  had  shown  his  hand  too  soon. 
Thenceforward  France  fully  understood  his  plotting 
and  from  that  moment  suspected  all  his  advances! 
Hence  the  final  appeal  to  arms  was  solely  the  result 
of  the  German  Emperor's  over-subtle  plotting  and 
*v    scheming. 

In  his  domestic  policies  William  is  the  authority 
"par  excellence"  with  the  powers  of  an  absolute 
autocracy.     To  the  idea  of  national  representation 


iWOlW 


WILLIAM  II  69 


he  is  instinctively  antipathetic.  He  does  not  recog- 
nize the  rights  of  the  deputies  to  have  any  ideas  of 
their  own.  As  has  been  said,  he  did  not  bother  with 
the  Party  of  the  Right.  He  anathematized  the  So- 
cial Democrats  with  the  sobriquet  of:  "Vater- 
land  losen  Schurken"  (rascals  without  a  country). 
When  he  had  to  give  way  to  the  Reichstag,  and  this 
often  happened,  he  was  furious  and  criticized  both 
parties  bitterly  and  frankly  to  his  intimates.  He 
was  almost  always  in  a  difficult  position — where  his 
domestic-policies  were  concerned — in  his  dual  capac- 
ity of  King  of  Prussia  and  Emperor  of  Germany. 
As  King  of  Prussia  he,  normally,  should  have  been 
able  to  rely  on  the  Agrarians  (The  Junker  Party) 
which  party  has  ever  been  the  support  of  the  Kings 
of  Prussia  and  has  supplied  the  best  elements  to  the 
Prussian  armies.  They  were  essentially  reaction- 
aries. But  as  Emperor  of  Germany,  William  found 
it  very  difficult  to  follow  a  reactionary  policy.  The 
German  Empire  had  been  created — as  Bismarck 
said — by  schoolmasters  ("Das  Deutches  Reich  ist 
von  Schuhlehrer  geschaffen  worden").  Its  power 
and  its  extension  were  principally  due  to  the  com- 
mercial and  industrial  classes.  Naturally  enough, 
these  elements  which  had  established  the  German 
Empire  and  greatly  contributed  to  its  vast  power, 
belonged  to  the  liberal  party.  William  had  to 
pursue  an  agrarian  policy,  which  exasperated  the 
Liberals,  and  yet  whenever  he  appeared  to  be  in 


70     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

favour  of  the  policy  advocated  by  the  Liberals  the 
Agrarians  promptly  set  up  a  wild  clamour.  This 
situation  often  placed  the  Emperor  in  most  embar- 
rassing positions  especially  when  the  extension  of 
credit,  vitally  necessary  to  him  for  the  enlarging  of 
his  armed  forces  and  especially  for  his  navy,  was  in 
question.  He  then  had  recourse  to  flattering  the 
Liberals  and,  of  course,  the  capitalists.  He  also 
made  use  of  wise  and  cunning  propaganda  all  over 
the  country  through  the  press.  After  having  pro- 
claimed the  principle:  "The  future  of  Germany  is 
on  the  seas,"  ("Die  Zukunft  Deutchlands  ist  auf 
dem  Wasser"),  he  covered  the  country  with  a  net 
of  Naval  Societies,  ("Flotten  Vereine").  He  even 
nominated  the  members  and  then  gave  them  high 
decorations  and  procured  all  the  moneys  necessary 
for  their  work  under  his  direct  orders.  He  also 
showered  favours  on  the  capitalists,  including  the 
Jews.  Jewish  bankers,  the  "Friedlander,"  the 
"Furstenberg"  and  others  were  his  habitual  guests 
on  the  Hohenzollern  for  his  annual  voyage  of  pleas- 
ure to  Norwegian  waters.  He  said  to  Ballin — the 
great  shipping  magnate:  "Ballin,  you  will  yet  be 
one  of  my  Ministers ! ' '  And  when  Ballin  answered : 
"You  forget,  Sire,  that  I  am  a  Jew,"  the  Emperor 
replied  quickly  ...  "I  may  have  need  of  them" 
("Die  kann  ich  auch  brauchen"). 

Desirous  of  protecting  his  commerce  and  being 
unable  to  follow  a  frankly  commercial  policy — thanks 


WILLIAM  II  71 

to  the  Junkers — lie  necessarily  threw  himself  into 
his  colonial  policy  with  great  vigour  in  order  to  pro- 
cure new  markets  for  Germany's  products  and  also 
to  avoid  emigration  to  the  colonies  of  other  nations 
which  he  always  dreaded  and  which  was  rapidly 
growing — especially  to  the  United  States. 

When  his  attention  was  called  to  the  fact  that  the 
increase  of  the  German  element  in  the  United  States 
could  only  have  favourable  results  in  influencing 
American  politics  even  as  he  might  dictate,  he  an- 
nounced:— "You  do  not  know  my  Germans.  When 
they  are  in  America  they  drink  beer  as  usual  and  sing 
'Die  Wacht  am  Rhein.'  They  have  on  the  walls  of 
their  houses  portraits  of  my  grandfather,  of  Bis- 
marck and  of  Moltke.  But  you  will  not  often  find 
my  portrait,  and  in  political  matters,  they  have  be- 
come thorough  Yankees." 

As  the  best  opportunities  for  colonization  overseas 
were  in  British  and  French  hands,  he  had  to  be  con- 
tent with  territory  of  a  secondary  class,  and  to  his 
keen  disappointment,  the  German  colonies  were  far 
from  prosperous. 

Germany,  though  very  strong  commercially,  is  not 
strong  in  the  art  of  colonization.  Count  von  Goet- 
zen,  Governor  of  Dar-es-Salam,  said  to  me  person- 
ally: "This  colony  is  flooded  with  officials.  In  the 
city  quantities  of  well  uniformed  police  may  be  seen, 
but  a  few  kilometres  from  Dar-es-Salam,  I  have  met 
leopards  and,  about  a  week  ago,  lions  devoured  two 


72     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

railway  conductors  who  were  on  a  train  standing  in  a 
siding,  at  the  very  gates  of  the  city.  Our  administra- 
tion  is  perfect,  but  we  sadly  lack  workmen.  The 
natives  prefer  to  work  in  the  British  and  Portuguese 
colonies  rather  than  for  us." 

It  was  said  in  Berlin  that  the  Emperor  dreamed  at 
one  time  of  buying  the  Belgian  Congo  outright,  but 
was  forced  to  relinquish  this  idea  in  view  of  the  very 
strong  Anglo-French  opposition.  I  was  present 
when  the  old  King  Leopold  of  Belgium  visited  the 
German  Emperor  at  Berlin.  The  Emperor, — who 
disliked  Leopold  in  his  heart  of  hearts,  because  of  his 
penchant  for  mistresses  and  his  all-round  doubtful 
morality — treated  him  nevertheless  with  exceptional 
courtesy  and  paid  him  many  attentions. 

The  German  Emperor  is  a  military  monarch  from 
1  the  soles  of  his  feet  to  the  crown  of  his  head.  He 
adores  all  soldiery  and  military  matters,  and  enters 
into  the  most  minute  details  of  military  life. 
Scarcely  a  day  passes  without  his  having  visited 
some  regiment  or  other.  He  asks  himself  to  dinner 
in  the  officers'  messes  regularly  and  spends  hours  on 
end  therein.  In  order  to  lessen  the  expense  of  his 
officers  on  these  occasions  he  especially  forbade  the 
drinking  of  French  champagne  from  German  bot- 
tles! I  was  informed  that  he  was  well  aware  of  this 
deception  which  was  practised  for  his  sake,  and 
cheerfully  acquiesced  in  it.  It  is  the  custom  that 
when  the  Emperor  honours  one  or  other  regiment 


WILLIAM  II  73 

with  his  presence,  the  colonel  addresses  a  patriotic 
speech  to  him  to  which  the  monarch  always  answers 
at  great  length. 

A  few  days  before  the  fall  of  Prince  von  Buelow, 
— an  unusually  stormy  session  took  place  in  the 
Reichstag  because  of  a  letter  the  Emperor  had  writ- 
ten to  the  German  Ambassador  at  Paris.  All  parties 
combined  against  the  personal  and  anti-constitu- 
tional interference  of  the  Emperor  in  serious  mat- 
ters of  state.  The  members'  criticism  was  specially 
directed  against  the  impulsive  and  mischievous 
speeches  of  the  Emperor.  Prince  von  Buelow  sol- 
emnly promised  to  put  a  stop  to  the  verbosity  of 
his  master.  Shortly  after  this  the  Emperor  was 
dining  at  the  officers'  mess  in  the  barracks  of  a  cer- 
tain regiment,  and  the  Colonel  made  the  usual  ad- 
dress. The  Emperor  answered:  "My  dear  Col- 
onel, I  would  like  to  be  able  to  say  a  few  words  to 
you  all  here.  ..."  There  he  stopped  and  signified 
his  inability  to  proceed  by  putting  his  hand  over  his 
mouth.  This  little  incident  proves  how  the  Emperor 
could  be  influenced  by  the  Reichstag,  notwithstanding 
his  great  power  and  general  omnipotence. 

When  he  made  his  official  inspections  of  troops, 
incomparable  and  peerless  actor  as  he  was,  he  made 
himself  up  very  cleverly  and  by  means  of  paints  to 
closely  resemble  Ca?sar.  To  do  him  justice,  he  knew 
how  to  talk  to  his  soldiers,  and  also  how  to  excite 
their  patriotism  to  the  highest  pitch.     He  was  un- 


74     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

questionably  very  popular  with  the  army,  and  was 
the  idol  of  the  German  soldiery.  Their  discipline 
and  enthusiasm,  in  the  present  war  give  complete 
proof  of  this. 

Such  is  the  man  who  directs  the  destinies  of  the 
German  Empire.  To  describe  his  most  complex 
character  fully  whole  volumes  would  be  needed.  I 
have  only  given  a  personal  impression  of  him  which 
was  obtained  through  living  fourteen  years  in  Ger- 
many. Incontestably,  despite  all  his  faults,  the 
German  Emperor  is  a  distinct  and  rare  personality. 
His  projects  and  ideas  were  vast,  embracing  not  only 
Germany  but  the  entire  world.  But  in  the  putting 
of  them  into  execution  his  extremely  impulsive  char- 
acter— his  habit  of  acting  on  the  spur  of  the  moment, 
his  sudden  decisions  made  without  consideration,  and 
his  extreme  vanity,  created  very  serious  obstacles  to 
his  success.  His  plans  were  blocked  because  he  had 
not  calculated  their  effect.  In  his  foreign  policies 
he  wanted  too  much,  and  he  always  wanted  to  act 
immediately. 

Obsessed  with  the  idea  of  German  greatness  he 
tried  to  exploit  the  whole  universe,  and  in  so  doing 
naturally  added  to  the  list  of  his  enemies.  He 
plunged  towards  the  Turkish  East,  encouraged  Aus- 
tria on  her  Balkan  policy  and  battered  his  head 
against  Russia,  and  in  so  doing  seriously  disturbed 
the  relations  between  Russia  and  Germany.  In  fol- 
lowing his  colonial  policy  he  feverishly  hastened  the 


WILLIAM  II  75 

building  of  war  ships,  proclaimed  himself  Grand  Ad- 
miral of  the  Atlantic,  and  found  himself  face  to  face 
with  Britain's  immense  sea  power.  He  assiduously 
cultivated  France  in  the  hope  of  winning  her  to  his 
strong  anti-British  policies,  and  on  the  spur  of  the 
moment  at  Tangiers  and  later  at  Agadir  he  again 
evoked  in  the  memories  of  all  the  present  Allies  the 
bloody  pages  of  1870. 

He  did  everything  he  could  to  win  the  friendship 
of  the  United  States.  All  his  favours  and  all  his 
personal  attentions  were  showered  on  the  Americans 
who  came  in  their  yachts  to  Kiel  in  the  racing  season. 
He  gave  the  city  of  New  York  a  statue  of  Frederick 
II,  executed  by  himself,  and  at  the  same  time  spread 
a  veritable  network  of  spies  all  over  the  United 
States,  thus  making  the  very  name  of  German  anath- 
ema there,  and  by  inconceivable  treachery  paved  the 
way  for  the  intervention  of  that  vast  power  in  the 
European  War. 

His  political  projects  are  incontestably  worthy  of 
a  great  sovereign  but  when  it  comes  to  putting  them 
into  operation,  faults  and  weaknesses  are  apparent 
which  can  only  be  the  outcome  of  a  very  question* 
and  mediocre  miini— 

The  unlimited  ambition  of  the  Kaiser  and  his  arro- 
gant desire  to  be  the  centre  of  attraction  have  prac- 
tically paralyzed  all  his  acts.  He  was  not  satisfied 
with  sowing  seeds  but  he  wanted  also  immediately 
to  reap  the  harvest.    He  wanted  to  do  everything 


76     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

himself  and  not  leave  anything  to  his  successors. 
Evidently  his  main  object  in  life  was  to  write  his 
own  epitaph  as  "William  the  Greatest,"  and  this 
was  one  of  the  essential  causes  of  the  present 
struggle. 


CHAPTER  IV 

THE   GERMAN    MINISTERS 

I  did  not  personally  know  Count  de  Caprivi  de 
Montecuccoli,  the  Emperor's  second  Imperial  Chan- 
cellor, who  succeeded  Bismarck.  He  was  known  as  a 
good  soldier,  absolutely  honest  but  little  prepared 
for  the  part  he  was  destined  to  play.  In  speaking 
of  his  own  dismissal  and  Caprivi 's  appointment  in 
his  place,  Bismarck,  just  created  General  in  Chief, 
said,  "The  Emperor  has  made  a  General  of  his  fore- 
most chancellor,  and  one  of  his  best  generals  he  has 
made  a  Chancellor."  The  short  tenure  of  Count 
Caprivi  in  office  was  foreshadowed  when  he  de- 
nounced the  treaty  with  Russia  which  had  been  made 
by  Bismarck  in  the  days  of  his  power,  and  also  initi- 
ated an  anti- Agrarian  policy.  Caprivi  fell  under  the 
violent  attacks  of  the  Junkers  party. 
—  Prince  Hohenlohe,  who  succeeded  him,  is  hardly 
known  in  Europe  or  even  in  Germany.  He  neverthe- 
less deserves  a  certain  amount  of  attention.  He  had 
previously  been  President  of  the  Ministerial  Council 
in  Bavaria,  where  he  was  greatly  liked  and  esteemed 
by  all  parties  without  exception.  He  later  held  the 
position  of  Ambassador  in  Paris  and  succeeded,  in 

77 


78     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

spite  of  many  serious  difficulties  he  had  to  contend 
with  while  there,  in  making  himself  very  popular. 
Before  being  made  Chancellor  he  was  the  Emperor's 
personal  representative  in  Alsace-Lorraine.  After 
he  became  Chancellor  he  had  to  accept  as  Foreign 
Minister  Herr  von  Buelow,  a  great  favourite"  01  the 
Emperor,  and  who  from  the  time  of  his  entrance  into 
politics  was  considered  in  Berlin  as  successor  to 
Hohenlohe  sooner  or  later.  The  position  of  the 
Chancellor  at  once  became  very  ambiguous.  To 
please  the  new  star,  which  was  in  the  ascendant,  the 
flatterers  at  Court  hastened  to  intrigue  against  the 
Chancellor.  But  it  must  be  admitted  that  Prince 
Hohenlohe  accepted  this  disagreeable  state  of  affairs 
with  a  princeliness  which  was  characteristic.  He 
allowed  his  enemies  full  rein.  One  day  he  said  to 
me,  "When  I  was  First  Minister  in  Bavaria,  Ambas- 
sador in  Paris  and  the  Emperor's  representative  in 
Alsace-Lorraine,  it  was  said  of  me  that  I  was  a  great 
statesman.  I  was  the  only  one  to  disbelieve  this! 
Now  that  I  am  Chancellor  of  the  Empire  the  Berlin 
world  would  have  it  that  I  am  an  ignorant  brute,  and 
I  am  the  only  man  who  does  not  believe  it ! " 

Prince  Hohenlohe  had  married  a  Russian,  the 
Princess  Wittgenstein,  daughter  of  the  hero  of  the 
Napoleonic  Wars  of  1812,  and  was  a  great  landed 
proprietor  in  Eussia.  He  was  an  ardent  advocate  of 
a  strong  and  binding  entente  with  Russia.  Indeed 
this  was  his  political  creed.    At  the  beginning  of  his 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  79 

chancellorship  he  enjoyed  a  certain  influence.  As 
the  Empress'  uncle  he  had  the  freedom  of  the  Im- 
perial Court,  but  very  soon  this  influence  had  to  give 
way  to  that  of  von  Buelow,  whose  subtle  and  flatter- 
ing manner  and  nature  were  gratifying  to  the 
Sovereign. 

Prince  Hohenlohe  vacated  his  office  in  the  same 
way  as  he  came  to  it — with  all  the  dignity  of  a  great 
nobleman  and  the  manners  of  a  gentleman.  He  was 
never  known  to  complain  of  the  Emperor,  or  to  sneer 
at  his  successor  as  Bismarck  did.  The  new  chan- 
cellor was  diametrically  his  opposite.  Von  Buelow 
was  the  perfect  type  of  a  Careerist  or  Arrivist.  He 
was  very  astute  and  machiavellian.  A  master  of  the 
art  of  flattering  those  who  could  be  of  use  to  him, 
possessed  of  extraordinary  erudition,  an  excep- 
tional memory,  and  a  superlatively  wonderful  ora- 
torical talent,  von  Buelow  was  a  brilliant  conversa- 
tionalist and  a  diplomat  of  great  finesse.  I  will  not 
go  so  far  as  to  say  that  his  policies  were  conceived  or 
carried  out  on  this  scale,  but  I  think  that  his  chief 
political  fault  was  pandering  too  much  to  the  caprices 
of  his  Imperial  Master.  Left  to  himself  von  Buelow 
might  have  risen  to  be  a  really  remarkable  states- 
man, for  he  had  all  the  qualities  that  are  necessary 
for  the  making  of  one.  His  speeches  in  the  Reich- 
stag were  always  in  good  taste,  and  much  admired, 
although  these  speeches  were  sometimes  very  in- 
sincere and  rang  hollow.     The  first  time  he  addressed 


J 


80     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  Reichstag  he  roused  the  unanimous  applause  of 
all  the  deputies.  I  was  present  at  the  time,  and  left 
with  Herr  Kardorff,  one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Party 
of  the  Right.  He  was  most  enthusiastic  about  von 
Buelow  and  his  speech,  but  after  having  gone  a  few 
steps  with  me  he  said  suddenly: — "My  dear  Schel- 
king,  when  one  stops  to  think — what  did  Buelow 
really  say?"  This  characteristic  was  the  most  re- 
markable of  all  others  in  the  Emperor 's  fourth  Chan- 
cellor. There  is  no  need  to  detail  the  policies  fol- 
lowed by  Prince  von  Buelow  while  he  was  in  power. 
He  was  a  docile  instrument  in  the  Emperor's  hands. 

In  his  private  life  the  Prince  was  a  most  delightful 
and  charming  man.  He  captivated  all  who  came 
near  him  by  his  intelligence,  his  brilliant  conversa- 
tion, and  his  great  amiability.  But  when  one  knew 
him  better  one  detected  a  falseness  beneath  all  these 
qualities. 

During  the  whole  of  his  stay  in  office  he  had  but 
one  really  patriotic  impulse.  That  was  on  the  day 
when  he  promised  the  Reichstag  to  control  his 
Sovereign's  habit  of  making  speeches,  and  to  assume 
the  responsibility  for  them.  But  at  the  same  time 
and  by  that  promise  he  threw  aside  his  protector, 
to  whom  he  owed  his  rapid  rise  to  power,  and  risked 
his  whole  career,  having  in  nine  years  advanced  from 
the  position  of  Councillor  to  the  German  Ambassa- 
dor at  St.  Petersburg  to  the  Chancellorship  of  the 
German  Empire. 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  81 

Prince  von  Buelow  married  an  Italian,  the  Prin- 
cess Camporeale,  who  had  been  Countess  Poenhaf  in 
her  first  marriage.  She  had  ever  cultivated  music 
and  poetry  and  was  a  musician  far  above  the  ordi- 
nary. Pupil  of  Liszt  and  friend  of  Wagner,  she  had 
a  saioirwhieh.  was  frequented  not  only  by  the  highest 
Berlin  society,  but  also  by  the  whole  artistic  and  lit- 
erary world.  Herr  Stein,  the  well  known  editor  of 
the  Frankfurter  Zeitung,  was  one  of  von  Buelow 's 
intimates.  As  the  Prince  assiduously  cultivated  the 
press,  he  often  received  Stein  even  when  ambas- 
sadors were  waiting  to  see  him  on  matters  of  state. 

In  the  salon  of  the  Princess  all  speech  was  unre- 
stricted and  frankness  cultivated,  and  in  this  way 
Prince  von  Buelow  was  always  in  touch  with  the 
world  at  large,  and  with  the  ideas  of  all  classes  of  the 
people.  As  the  Princess  had  become  engaged  to  her 
first  husband  in  Count  Osten-Sacken's  drawing-room 
in  Florence,  where  the  latter  was  Charge  d 'Affaires 
in  1865,  the  relations  between  the  Chancellor's  family 
and  our  ambassador  were  of  the  most  intimate  kind. 
But  our  ambassador  was  rather  suspicious  of  Prince 
von  Buelow.  He  wTas  not  sure  of  his  sincerity,  and 
told  me  more  than  once  that  he  would  rather  have 
to  do  with  Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein  who  was 
a  gross  personality  at  best,  but  with  whom  one  was 
always  sure  where  one  stood. 

Prince  Buelow  fell  after  the  promise  he  made  to 
the  Reichstag  with  regard  to  the  Imperial  habit  of 


82     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

making  speeches.  William  was  furious  with  Buelow 
for  giving  this  promise  and  a  few  months  later  the 
chancellor  was  suddenly  dismissed.  But,  and  this 
is  strange,  the  Emperor's  irritation  with  him  did  not 
last  long  and  Prince  von  Buelow  continues,  even  to- 
day, to  keep  his  master's  great  friendship  and 
favour.  During  the  present  war,  he  has  filled  the 
position  of  Ambassador  to  Eome,  and  it  is  certain  his 
name  will  be  prominent  among  those  of  the  German 
plenipotentiaries  to  the  Peace  Conference. 

The  discovery  of  a  successor  to  Prince  von  Buelow 
proved  most  difficult.  It  was  necessary  to  find  a 
statesman  who  was  not  only  a  diplomat  but  well 
versed  in  the  domestic  conditions  then  existing  in 
Germany.  For  a  time  Count  von  Wedel  was  con- 
sidered for  the  position.  He  was  then  representa- 
tive of  the  Emperor  in  Alsace-Lorraine,  and  had 
held  the  post  of  Ambassador  to  Vienna  for  several 
years.  It  was  even  said  at  Berlin  that  the  position 
of  the  Chancellorship  had  actually  been  offered  to 
him,  but  that  he  had  declined.  Finally  the  Emper- 
or's choice  fell  on  Herr  von  Bethmann-Hollweg. 
This  nomination  was  entirely  unexpected !  The  new 
Chancellor  was  of  obscure  birth,  his  ancestors  were 
Jewish,  and  were  a  family  of  bankers  at  Frankfurt. 
The  family  name  was  Bethmann,  and  the  noble  name 
of  Hollweg  came  to  it  by  marriage.  He  had  never 
held  a  diplomatic  post,  but  had  been  Chief  of  Police 
at   Potsdam,    (Polizeipresident),    Governor   of   the 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  83 

Rhine  Province  and  finally  Governor  General  of  the 
Province  of  Brandenburg,  of  which  the  capital  is 
Berlin. 

At  Potsdam  he  had  been  in  close  touch  with  the 
Emperor  and  he  knew  how  to  improve  his  oppor- 
tunities, and  gain  the  monarch's  favour.  He  knew 
nothing  of  the  basic  principles  of  diplomacy.  Our 
Ambassador  in  Berlin  told  me  he  was  absolutelv  use- 
less,  that  it  was  a  waste  of  time  to  talk  to  him,  and 
that  he  preferred  to  discuss  important  matters  with 
one  of  the  Secretaries  of  State.  But  gradually  von 
Bethmann-Hollweg  found  himself.  At  the  interview 
between  the  Kaiser  and  Nicholas  II  in  a  Baltic  port, 
Sazonoff,  then  our  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  inti- 
mated that  it  was  most  agreeable  to  discuss  affairs 
with  him.  This  remark  is  characteristic  of  Sazonoff 
as  it  was  von  Bethmann-Hollweg  who  forced  the 
withdrawal  by  Sazonoff  of  our  arrangement  with 
Germany  regarding  Persia,  which  was  humiliating 
for  us. 

When  he  resigned  his  post  Herr  von  Bethmann- 
Hollweg  had  achieved  the  reputation  of  having  been 
entirely  honest  in  all  his  dealings,  but  otherwise  a 
nonentity,  lacking  in  any  personal  initiative  and  will- 
ingly agreeing  to  his  master's  slightest  wish  and 
whim. 

I  did  not  know  Dr.  Michaelis — his  successor — 
nearly  so  well.  But  he  occupied  only  a  second  rate 
position  at  the  best.     It  was  said  of  him  that  he  was 


84     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Prussian  to  the  backbone,  and  eager  to  copy  Bis- 
marck, but  lacking  any  resemblance  to  the  Iron  Chan- 
cellor, with  the  exception  of  his  personal  grossness, 
which  was  notorious.  In  that  he  indeed  resembled 
the  great  German.  It  has  never  been  understood 
why  he  was  chosen  by  the  Emperor. 

The  next  Imperial  Chancellor,  I  knew  exceedingly 
well  while  I  was  stationed  in  Munich.  Count  Hert- 
ling  is  a  Bavarian  by  birth,  and  during  my  official  life 
he  was  at  different  times  a  deputy  in  the  Bavarian 
Chamber  and  in  the  Reichstag.  He  belonged  to  the 
centre  Catholic  Party,  of  which  he  was  one  of  the 
leaders  up  to  the  very  day  on  which  he  was  nominated 
to  the  Chancellorship.  He  was  a  thoroughgoing 
Catholic.  More  than  once  it  was  expected  he  would 
be  appointed  prime  minister  of  Bavaria.  But  the 
old  Prince  Regent — although  of  a  very  liberal  mind 
where  religion  was  concerned — was  afraid  of  Hert- 
ling's  super-pronounced  Catholic  views  and  ideas. 
Ludwig  III,  the  then  King  of  Bavaria,  devout  Catho- 
lic himself,  made  him  President  of  the  Ministerial 
Council,  and  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  I  am 
forced  to  believe  that  his  nomination  as  Chancellor 
of  the  Empire — without  wishing  in  the  least  to  de- 
tract from  his  many  strong  mental  qualities — was 
made  first  to  flatter  and  please  the  amour  propre 
of  the  Bavarians,  and  secondly  so  that  the  Em- 
peror could  have  at  his  right  hand  one  who  had  the 
ear  of  the  Pope,  who  could  therefore  easily  be  used 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  85 

to  approach  the  Holy  Father  in  case  it  should  be 
necessary  to  have  the  support  of  the  Holy  See  in 
the  peace  pourparlers  which  must  come.  In  view 
of  the  various  complications  which  exist  in  Ger- 
many and  Austria  I  know  the  above  to  be  the  situa- 
tion. 

I  personally  knew  very  well  two  other  important 
ministers.    Baron  Marschall  von  Bieberstein,  and 
the  present  (June,  1918)  Foreign  Secretary,  Herr 
von  Kuehlmann.     Baron  Marschall  was  the  prede- 
cessor of  Prince  von  Buelow  in  the  office  of  Foreign 
Secretary.     He  was  a  Badener  by  birth  and  a  state 
attorney    by    profession.     Bismarck    noticed     his 
speeches  at  that  time,  and  proposed  he  should  take 
up  a  diplomatic  career.     He  did  so  and  attained  the 
high  rank  of  foreign  secretary  which  he  occupied 
during  the  chancellorship  of  von  Caprivi,  and  for 
two  years  under  Prince  Hohenlohe.     He  was  a  man 
of  remarkable  intelligence,  and  force  of  character 
which  was  only  equalled  by  his  personal  grossness. 
He  treated  foreign  diplomats  with  the  greatest  negli- 
gence imaginable,  and  made  them  wait  in  his  ante- 
chamber sometimes  for  hours  at  a  time.     Hence  all 
foreign  representatives  complained  bitterly  of  him. 
He  only  made  an  exception  in  the  case  of  Count 
Osten-Sacken,  after  having  attempted  to  treat  him 
as  he  did  the  others.    But  our  ambassador  taught 
him  a  lesson. 

One  day,  a  few  minutes  before  dinner,  at  eight 


86     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

o'clock  in  the  evening,  the  secretary  of  the  Foreign 
Secretary  came  to  our  Embassy  and  communicated 
— verbally  to  Count  Osten-Sacken — the  desire  of 
Baron  Marschall  to  speak  with  him  at  once.  An- 
noyed at  this  unprecedented  method  of  procedure, 
our  Ambassador  said  to  the  envoy — "Acquaint  the 
Secretary  of  State  with  the  fact  that  I  am  about  to 
sit  down  to  dinner.  After  having  dined  I  shall 
smoke  my  cigar  quietly,  and  if  I  have  time  in  the 
course  of  the  evening,  I  will  come  to  see  him. ' ' 

About  10.30  Count  Osten-Sacken  went  to  the  For- 
eign Office.  Baron  Marschall  was  awaiting  him  at 
the  door  and  was  voluble  in  his  excuses  and  apolo- 
gies. "You  are  right  in  excusing  yourself,  my  dear 
Marschall,"  said  our  Ambassador,  "for  it  must  in- 
deed be  something  most  urgent  which  permitted  you 
to  disturb  the  Russian  Ambassador  at  so  unreason- 
able an  hour. ' ' 

Baron  Marschad  took  this  lesson  to  heart,  and 
also  took  very  good  care  not  to  run  the  risk  of  ex- 
periencing another  such  snub,  in  his  dealings  with 
our  Ambassador.  From  that  time  onward,  the  re- 
lations between  our  Embassy  and  the  German  For- 
eign Office  left  nothing  to  be  desired.  The  Baron 
Marschall  was  a  supporter  of  our  entente  with  Ger- 
many and — with  our  assistance — of  one  with  France 
also.  His  master  stroke  in  diplomacy  which  en- 
couraged such  an  entente,  was  the  Treaty  of  Shim- 
onoseki,  which  brought  the  Chino-Japanese  War  to 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  87 

an  end.  The  Japanese  had  occupied  Port  Arthur 
and  seemed  very  desirous  of  remaining  there.  But 
France  and  Russia  strongly  protested  against  the 
establishment  of  the  Empire  of  the  Rising  Sun  on 
the  Asiatic  Continent.  Pourparlers  were  proceed- 
ing and  were  almost  at  an  end  when — quite  unex- 
pectedly— Baron  Marschall  made  the  suggestion 
that  Germany  should  be  accepted  as  the  ally  of 
France  and  Russia  in  the  Port  Arthur  question. 
The  Cabinets  of  Petrograd  and  Paris,  unable  to  re- 
fuse this  gratuitous  German  collaboration,  had  to 
accept  it,  and  thus  for  the  first  time  since  1870, 
France,  Russia  and  Germany  worked  towards  the 
same  end.  It  was  the  dream  of  William  II  seem- 
ingly coming  true.  Baron  Marschall  had  made  it 
practicable,  and  it  was  the  German  Emperor  who 
later  spoiled  it  all. 

The  Foreign  Secretary  fell  after  the  famous  legal 
case  of  Lutsow-Leckardt,  that  caused  such  tremen- 
dous scandal  at  the  time.  These  gentlemen  had 
forged  letters  compromising  to  the  Imperial  Gov- 
ernment, and  were  accused  of  high  treason.  As  the 
contents  of  these  letters  chiefly  concerned  Baron 
Marschall,  he  was  attacked  most  bitterly  by  a  cer- 
tain section  of  the  German  Press  with  the  object  of 
bringing  about  his  downfall.  The  Foreign  Secre- 
tary— remembering  his  legal  past — presented  him- 
self at  the  Bar  of  Justice  to  defend  himself.  He 
began  his  speech,  which  was  in  the  nature  of  a  plea 


88     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

against  the  abuses  of  the  Prussian  Government,  with 
these  words — "In  coming  here  I  take  refuge  in  public 
opinion,"  (Flucht  in  die  offentlichkeit).  His  de- 
fence of  himself  was  masterly.  Lutzoff  and  Leck- 
ardt  were  condemned  but  the  whole  country  ap- 
plauded the  plea  of  Baron  Marschall.  Yet  a  week 
later  the  Emperor  discharged  him.  William  never 
forgave  him  for  having  had  recourse  to  public  opin- 
ion instead  of  trusting  in  him. 

Two  or  three  days  after  the  trial,  Count  Osten- 
Sacken  went  to  see  Marschall,  who  was  ill.  He 
complimented  him  on  his  great  success,  but  he  also 
asked  him  if  the  whole  affair  were  not  likely  to  bring 
upon  him  the  displeasure  of  the  Monarch.  The 
Foreign  Secretary  answered,  "Rest  assured,  I  am 
stronger  than  ever  before. ' '  Two  days  later  he  was 
discharged.  Nevertheless,  acceding  to  the  insistence 
of  Prince  von  Buelow,  the  Emperor  appointed  him 
Ambassador  to  Constantinople,  and  it  was  there  espe- 
cially that  the  Baron  gave  full  proof  of  his  excep- 
tional diplomatic  powers.  It  was  he  who  proposed 
the  trip  of  William  II  to  the  Orient,  who  crystallized 
the  Turco-German  rapprochement,  and  made  the 
Sultan  a  vassal  to  the  German  Emperor.  To  him 
is  the  credit  due  for  the  project  of  the  Bagdad  Rail- 
way, and  it  was  he  who  prepared  all  the  details  for 
the  execution  of  this  great  project.  Again  it  was 
he  who  succeeded  in  placing  German  officers  in  posi- 
tions of  high  command  in  the  Ottoman  Army.     To 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  89 

do  William  II  justice,  though  he  did  not  love  the 
Baron  he  covered  him  with  distinctions.  He  sent 
him  from  Constantinople  to  London  as  ambassador, 
and  there  Baron  Marschall  died — having  but  shortly 
before  been  appointed  Chevalier  of  the  Black  Eagle 
— the  highest  order  in  Prussia. 

Herr  von  Kuehlmann  came  to  power,  thanks  ex- 
clusively to  the  Emperor's  favour.  There  can  be  no 
comparison  between  him  and  such  a  forceful  man 
as  Baron  Marschall.  I  knew  him  intimately  in  Mu- 
nich, when  he  was  a  boy.  His  mother  honoured  me 
with  her  friendship.  She  was  a  superb  musician, 
and  a  by  no  means  undistinguished  composer. 
Herr  von  Kuehlmann,  Sr.,  a  very  rich  man,  was  a 
merchant  of  Munich,  having  made  his  vast  fortune 
at  Constantinople  in  the  construction  of  the  Ana- 
tolian Railways.  His  wife,  nee  Baronne  Redwitz, 
belonged  to  the  highest  Bavarian  aristocracy.  Their 
son,  young  Kuehlmann,  was  destined  for  a  Bavarian 
diplomat's  career,  but  his  ambition  was  higher  than 
that,  and  he  entered  the  service  of  the  Empire. 
His  first  appointments  were  not  very  encourag- 
ing to  his  ambition.  He  had  to  be  content  with 
posts  of  secondary  importance  in  South  America, 
Persia,  etc.  One  day  he  was  presented  to  the  Em- 
peror, and  made  a  very  favourable  impression,  but 
he  owes  his  final  success  to  somewhat  unusual  cir- 
cumstances. Among  the  members  of  the  Russian 
Embassy  at  London  during  the  reign  of  Edward 


90     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

VII,  was  a  certain  Monsieur  Poklewsy-Kosiell, 
lately  the  Russian  Minister  to  Roumania.  He  was 
First  Secretary  and  later  Councillor  to  the  London 
embassy,  and  enjoyed  the  confidence  and  was  on 
terms  of  some  intimacy  with  the  British  Sovereign. 
Monsieur  Poklewsky  was  thus  popular  at  the  British 
Court,  and  much  sought  after  by  all  British  host- 
esses. He  was  very  rich,  and  being  a  man  of  con- 
siderable intelligence  used  his  fortune  to  make  his 
position  still  better.  During  one  of  his  visits  to 
London  the  German  Emperor  met  Poklewsky,  and 
learnt  of  the  exceptional  position  the  latter  occu- 
pied. William  wished  to  secure  just  such  a  man 
as  Poklewsky  for  the  German  Embassy,  and  with  his 
usual  impulsiveness  appointed  Baron  Eckhart  von 
Eckhardstein  as  councillor.  The  new  councillor  had 
two  trumps  in  his  hand  for  the  game.  He  had  mar- 
ried the  daughter  of  Sir  John  Blundell  Maple,  and 
she  had  a  very  large  fortune  in  her  own  right.  But 
very  soon  after  his  appointment  the  Emperor  per- 
ceived that  the  man  he  had  made  Councillor  in  Lon- 
don only  resembled  Poklewsky  in  the  matter  of 
wealth.  The  intelligence  of  the  Russian  diplomat 
left  him  entirely  out  of  the  running.  The  Emperor 
discharged  von  Eckhardstein  as  suddenly  as  he  had 
appointed  him,  and  remembering  von  Kuehlmann, 
appointed  him  to  the  London  post.  This  was  the  be- 
ginning of  von  Kuehlmann 's  brilliant  career. 
Without  being  quite  able  to  attain  the  position 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  91 

Poklewsky  had  reached,  Kuehlmann  succeeded  in 
worming  his  way  cleverly  into  British  society  and 
becoming  a  member  of  the  best  clubs.  Gradually  he 
obtained  the  privilege  of  sending  personal  reports 
to  the  Emperor.  It  is  possible  that  he  was  de- 
ceived with  regard  to  the  real  intentions  of  the  Brit- 
ish Cabinet,  for  he  assured  his  sovereign  that  Great 
Britain  would  never  intervene  in  the  European  war 
the  Emperor  premeditated.  Even  so,  the  Emperor 
did  not  withdraw  his  support  of  Kuehlmann.  When 
it  became  a  question  of  encouraging  Turkey  to 
favour  an  alliance  with  Germany,  von  Kuehlmann 
was  sent  to  Constantinople.  Monsieur  de  Giers,  one 
time  Kussian  Ambassador  to  Turkey,  and  later  Am- 
bassador to  Italy,  told  me  that  the  Turks  in  his  time 
had  no  intention  of  breaking  their  neutrality,  if  such 
a  war  occurred.  There  were  then  two  parties  at 
Constantinople.  One  led  by  the  Grand  Vizier, 
worked  for  strict  neutrality,  the  other,  led  by  Enver 
Pasha  determined  on  an  alliance  with  Germany 
After  war  had  broken  out  four  days  were  sufficient 
for  von  Kuehlmann  to  persuade  the  Turks  to  allow 
the  Goeben  and  the  Breslau  to  attack  the  Russian 
coast  on  the  Black  Sea.  It  is  probably  due  to  this 
success  that  Kuehlmann  later  owed  his  appointment 
to  the  post  of  Foreign  Secretary. 

It  is  necessary  to  add  a  few  words  regarding  Ger- 
many's foreign  representatives  in  various  countries, 
whose  members  played  important  parts  at  their  vari- 


92     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

ous  posts,  until  within  a  few  days  of  the  actual  break- 
ing out  of  the  war.  The  choice  of  the  Emperor  in 
these  matters  was  not  always  happy.  He  per- 
mitted himself  to  be  guided — as  usual— purely  by 
personal  reasons,  and  personal  policies.  In  this 
manner  Count  Pourtales  was  sent  to  Petrograd,  as 
German  Ambassador — one  of  the  most  difficult  diplo- 
matic posts.  Mentally,  he  was  not  nearly  big 
enough  for  the  position.  In  the  same  way  Count  de 
Monts,  a  typical  Prussian,  stiff  and  severe,  was  ap- 
pointed Ambassador  to  Rome  where  he  was  intensely 
disliked. 

Count  Pourtales — married  to  Countess  Kanitz — 
was  my  colleague  at  The  Hague,  where  he  was  a  dis- 
tinct success.  He  went  from  there  as  Prussian  Min- 
ister to  Munich,  and  there  too,  made  for  himself  an 
enviable  position.  From  Munich  he  was  appointed 
Ambassador  to  Petrograd.  Justice  must  be  done 
him  by  saying  that  he  did  everything  he  could  to 
please.  Very  rich  in  his  own  right,  his  dinners  and 
other  entertainments  were  of  frequent  occurrence, 
and  always  in  excellent  taste.  His  receptions  were 
noted  for  the  eclaJLwith  which  they  went  off,  and  the 
number  of  notable  people  present.  But  diplomat  of 
the  old  school  as  he  was,  he  was  only  seen  in  the 
most  aristocratic  circles  and  salons.  He  did  not 
seem  to  realize  that  the  times  had  changed,  and  that 
a  foreign  diplomat  who  was  earnestly  desirous  of 
knowing  the  true  state  of  public  opinion  in  Russia, 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  93 

should  not  confine  himself  solely  to  high  society  in 
Petrograd.  Furthermore,  Count  Pourtales  was  not 
as  well  versed  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  his  duties 
as  he  should  have  been.  It  was  known  later  that  he 
expected  the  outbreak  of  a  revolution  in  Russia  the 
day  after  Germany  declared  war,  a  revolution  which 
he  said  in  a  code  message  I  happened  to  decipher, 
should  immediately  make  it  impossible  for  Russia 
to  fight  or  give  assistance  to  the  Allies.  Yet,  as 
the  world  knows,  Russia  struggled  to  do  its  best  from 
the  very  beginning,  despite  the  most  terrible  handi- 
caps imposed  upon  the  country  and  people  by  an  in- 
competent government  and  treacherous  ministers. 

In  political  circles  at  Petrograd,  Count  Pourtales 
was  not  taken  very  seriously.  He  was  deemed  vain 
and  possessed  of  but  little  intelligence.  This  was 
indeed  true,  for  when  by  chance  he  wished  to  be 
really  astute  and  cunning,  he  was  the  more  easily 
trapped. 

Thus,  for  instance,  a  few  months  before  the  war, 
an  article  of  the  most  virulent  kind  attacking  the 
amour  propre  of  Russia  appeared  in  the  Cologne 
Gazette.  It  was  proved  that  it  had  been  inspired  by 
Count  von  Dohna,  chief  A.  D.  C.  to  the  German  Em- 
peror, then  attached  to  the  Russian  Emperor's  per- 
son, at  the  instigation  of  Monsieur  Lucius,  Council- 
lor at  the  German  Embassy  in  Petrograd.  Both 
men  had  to  leave  the  Russian  capital  and  Count 
Pourtales  was  seriously  compromised.     The  whole 


94     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

policy  of  the  German  Embassy  in  Russia  was  cen- 
tred on  the  Count's  firm  conviction  that  Russia 
would  never  accept  a  war  with  Germany.  He  had 
been  spoiled  by  the  diplomatic  success  he  achieved 
in  1909,  over  the  annexation  of  Herzegovina  by  Aus- 
tria-Hungary. 

In  1914  at  the  time  of  the  Serbian  ultimatum, 
which  unleashed  the  dogs  of  war  in  Europe,  Count 
Pourtales  too  hastily  concluded  that  he  was  going 
to  place  another  diplomatic  feather  in  Germany's 
cap  by  achieving  complete  success  in  the  game  of 
threatening  Russia  with  war.  The  declaration  of 
war  made  him  lose  his  head  completely.  I  well 
remember  his  horrified  astonishment  which  for  a 
time  bordered  on  hysterics,  when  he  handed  our 
Foreign  Minister,  S.  D.  Sazonoff,  his  government's 
note  declaring  war.  He  was  very  pale  and  trembling 
all  over,  and  was  so  beside  himself  when  he  left  the 
Russian  minister's  presence  that  he  forgot  some  im- 
portant papers. 

The  German  Ambassador  to  Paris,  Baron  von 
Schoen,  was  similarly  not  equal  to  his  task.  He  came 
of  a  small  and  unknown  family  of  Jewish  origin,  his 
father  having  been  a  banker  at  Darmstadt.  Baron 
von  Schoen  was  far  from  being  a  serious  diplomat, 
and  confined  himself,  while  in  Paris,  to  playing  the 
part  of  a  thorough  bon  viveur  and  man  of  the  world. 
His  career  was  one  of  constant  shifts  and  changes, 
and  curiously  enough,  I  personally  played  a  certain 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  95 

part  in  his  promotion.  After  having  spent  many- 
years  at  Petrograd  and  Paris  as  Councillor  to  the 
German  Embassies,  he  was  appointed  minister  to 
one  of  the  South  American  Republics.  His  vanity 
wounded,  von  Schoen  refused  the  post.  Prince  von 
Buelow — who  in  any  case  did  not  like  him — offered 
him  an  even  less  important  post,  that  of  Minister 
of  Prussia  at  Oldenburg,  and  he  notified  the  Baron 
that  a  second  refusal  would  be  deemed  sufficient  rea- 
son for  his  immediate  discharge  fromjthe  diplomatic 
service.  Von  Schoen  handed  in  his  resignation,  but 
was  appointed  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies  at  the 
Court  of  Coburg,  where — nevertheless — he  did  not 
remain  very  long  because  he  was  not  liked  by  the 
Duchess  of  Coburg  (oniy  sister  of  the  Emperor 
Alexander  III).  He  then  retired  to  a  small  estate 
he  owned  in  Bavaria,  and  set  to  work  to  criticize  the 
Prussian  Court.  One  day  while  he  was  staying  for 
a  short  time  in  Berlin,  presumably  as  I  had  known 
him  very  well  in  Petrograd  and  Bavaria,  he  con- 
fided to  me  his  regret  and  disappointment  at  being 
out  of  the  diplomatic  service,  and  his  earnest  desire 
to  re-enter  it.  He  added  that  he  had  done  every- 
thing he  could  to  see  Prince  von  Buelow,  but  that 
the  latter  carefully  avoided  him.  Finally  he  asked 
if  I  would  be  his  intermediary  through  Count  Osten- 
Sacken,  and  try  and  obtain  an  invitation  for  him  to 
the  dinner  which  was  to  be  held  the  following  night 
at  the  Russian  Embassy,  and  to  which  the  Imperial 


96     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Chancellor  was  coming.  As  the  invitations  had  al- 
ready been  issued,  Count  Osten-Sacken  suggested 
that  he  should  come  in  during  the  evening.  Baron 
von  Schoen  hastened  to  accept  this  suggestion  and 
had  a  long  conversation  with  the  Chancellor  which  re- 
sulted in  his  appointment  as  Minister  to  Copenhagen, 
where  later  he  met  Monsieur  Iswolsky,  who  at  that 
time  represented  the  Russian  Emperor  at  the  Danish 
Court.  Both  of  them  being  ambitious  men  they 
soon  understood  one  another  and  concluded  a  pact. 
Baron  von  Schoen  promised  that  he  would  do  his 
best  to  obtain  for  Iswolsky  the  post  of  Ambassador 
to  Berlin,  and  Iswolsky  agreed  to  do  his  best  to  ob- 
tain for  the  Baron  the  post  of  Ambassador  to  Petro- 
grad.  As  it  turned  out  Iswolsky  succeeded.  Von 
Schoen  became  German  Ambassador  to  Russia,  and 
from  there  went  in  the  same  capacity  to  Paris. 
Baron  von  Schoen 's  intrigue  in  favour  of  Iswolsky 
met  a  stumbling  block  in  the  finesse  of  my  chief, 
Count  Osten-Sacken.  He  went  to  Petrograd  and 
presented  his  resignation  to  the  Emperor,  without 
a  word  of  warning,  explaining  to  him  the  utter  im- 
possibility of  continuing  his  work  in  Berlin,  con- 
tinually undermined  by  an  intrigue,  the  headquarters 
of  which  were  in  Copenhagen.  Nicholas  did  not  like 
sudden  shocks.  He  begged  Count  Osten-Sacken  to 
remain  at  his  post,  promising  to  put  an  end  to  Is- 
wolsky's  intrigues.  The  latter  stayed  on  at  Copen- 
hagen, but — as  may  seem  very  strange  to  those  ig- 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  97 

norant  of  the  character  of  Nicholas  II,  but  most  nat- 
ural to  those  who  know  it — Iswolsky  in  a  few  months 
became  Foreign  Minister  at  Petrograd. 

It  is  necessary  to  give  these  details  in  order  to 
draw  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  personal  interests 
of  the  Russian  and  German  foreign  representatives 
always  took  precedence  of  the  best  interests  of  the 
two  nations,  despite  such  vitally  serious  times  as 
those  immediately  prior  to  the  outbreak  of  the  war. 
Personal  intrigues  were  invariably  the  order  of  the 
day,  and  unfortunately,  the  characters  both  of  Wil- 
liam and  of  Nicholas — although  usually  so  opposite 
in  all  things — lent  themselves  to  this  dangerous  state 
of  affairs.  Pourtales  and  von  Schoen  knew  how  to 
flatter  the  amour  propre  of  their  respective  sover- 
eigns. They  made  an  art  of  sycophancy.  M.  Sazon- 
off,  for  instance,  one  of  the  last  foreign  ministers 
appointed  by  Nicholas,  who  held  his  portfolio  much 
longer  than  any  of  his  predecessors,  distributed  ap- 
pointments of  ministers  and  ambassadors,  not  be- 
cause of  any  talent  or  efficiency  in  the  men  he  chose 
but  exclusively  by  his  personal  liking  for  them.  This 
is  well  illustrated  by  the  appointment  of  Monsieur 
Sverbeef,  our  last  ambassador  to  Berlin,  who  was 
in  no  way  fitted  to  fill  the  position  of  my  former 
chief  Count  Osten-Sacken. 

The  Emperor  William  had  better  luck  in  his  choice 
of  an  ambassador  to  London.  Prince  Lichnowsky 
was  essentially  a  gentleman  in  every  acceptance  of 


98     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  term.  He  belonged  to  an  old  and  aristocratic 
Silesian  family;  he  was  very  rich  and  very  well 
read,  a  fine  conversationalist,  and  had  considerable 
finesse.  In  London  he  made  for  himself  entirely 
by  his  own  skilful  efforts,  an  exceedingly  enviable 
position,  both  in  political  circles  and  in  the  drawing- 
rooms  of  the  British  capital.  Unfortunately,  I  have 
every  reason  to  believe  that  his  diplomatic  actions 
were  somewhat  paralysed  by  von  Kuehlmann,  who 
was  Councillor  of  the  Embassy  at  the  time.* 

The  German  Emperor  had  entrusted  the  Embassy 
at  Vienna  to  Herr  von  Tchirsky,  emphatically  a  per- 
son of  a  gross  and  vulgar  nature.  The  following 
episode  proves  his  lack  of  subtlety,  and  his  inability 
to  adapt  himself  to  circumstances.  At  a  Court  Ball 
given  at  Petrograd,  Herr  von  Tchirsky,  who  was 
present,  as  he  was  then  Councillor  to  the  German 
Embassy  there,  was  walking  with  a  lady  on  his  arm, 
when  in  the  crowd  he  bumped  into  the  Grand  Duke 
Vladimir,  the  Emperor's  Uncle.  The  Grand  Duke, 
whose  pleasantness  was  of  a  somewhat  ponderous  na- 
ture, said  to  Herr  von  Tchirsky 's  companion — 
"What  can  you  find  to  talk  about  to  a  diplomat? 
They  are  always  so  frightfully  dull.  Come  with 
me  instead/'  and  he  offered  the  lady  his  arm.  Von 
Tchirsky 's  Prussian  pride  was  wounded.  He  com- 
plained to  his  Chief,  Prince  Eadolin,  about  the  mat- 

*  Editor's  Note:     This  was  written  before  the  publication  of  the 
Lichnowsky  memoirs.     They  completely  justify  the  author's  belief. 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  99 

ter,  making  his  version  of  the  incident  appear  much 
more  serious  than  it  really  was.  Radolin  went  alone 
to  see  the  Foreign  Minister  (Iswolsky)  and  insisted 
on  an  apology  from  the  Grand  Duke.  Iswolsky  re- 
ported the  incident  to  the  Emperor  in  person,  who — 
on  his  part — spoke  to  the  Grand  Duke.  The  latter 
was  exceedingly  astonished,  for  he  had  not  the  least 
intention  of  hurting  the  feelings  of  Tchirsky,  and 
much  less  those  of  Germany.  The  Grand  Duke  ex- 
plained this  to  Prince  Kadolin,  but  naturally  this  inci- 
dent did  not  tend  to  increase  the  popularity  of  the 
members  of  the  German  Embassy  in  diplomatic  and 
social  circles  in  Petrograd.  The  majority  of  the 
more  important  houses  were  closed  thereafter  to  von 
Tchirsky,  who  had  in  consequence  to  be  moved  to 
another  post.  Even  the  position  of  the  German 
Ambassador  was  seriously  compromised,  and  shortly 
after  Prince  Radolin  was  suddenly  transferred  to 
Paris.  Imagine  how  much  adaptability  there  was  in 
the  character  of  Tchirsky  when  it  was  a  question  of 
dealing  with  really  serious  diplomatic  affairs.  One 
suspects  Germany  did  not  desire  to  adapt  herself  to 
her  circumstances  but  was  constantly  on  the  look- 
out for  grievances. 

Before  having  been  raised  by  the  Emperor  to  the 
position  and  dignity  of  a  prince  of  the  German  Em- 
pire, the  new  ambassador  to  Paris  was  known  as 
Count  Radolinsky.  A  Pole  by  birth,  he  had  great 
landed  estates  in  the  province  of  Posen.     In  his 


100     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

youth  he  had  adopted  a  courtier's  life  and  had  be- 
come Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies  at  the  Court  of 
the  Crown  Prince  Frederick — later  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many under  the  title  of  Frederick  III.  He  was  the 
Crown  Prince's  most  intimate  friend,  and  also  pos- 
sessed the  fullest  confidence  and  friendship  of  the  fu- 
ture Empress  of  Germany,  who  was  the  daughter  of 
Queen  Victoria  of  England.  As  is  also  known,  dur- 
ing the  last  year  of  the  reign  of  William  I  (1888  to 
1890)  the  future  Emperor  Frederick  was  dying  at 
San  Remo,  of  an  illness  that  was  to  cause  his  death 
after  a  reign  of  a  hundred  days.  During  this  period 
an  intrigue  was  in  full  swing  at  Berlin  which  had 
as  its  object  the  abdication  of  the  Crown  Prince  of 
his  rights  to  the  German  Throne  in  favour  of  his 
son,  the  present  Emperor.  Prince  William,  who  was 
then  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  and  who  was  very  im- 
patient to  obtain  the  throne,  was  fully  cognizant  of 
the  details  of  this  nefarious  intrigue  and  was  not 
only  wholly  a  party  to  it,  but  energetic  in  its  fur- 
therance in  order  that  he  might  the  more  quickly 
achieve  supreme  powers. 

Bismarck  was  also  entangled  in  this  intrigue,  of 
his  own  volition,  but  he  committed  the  error  of  being 
too  sure  of  William,  whom  he  hoped  and  expected  to 
become  a  docile  instrument  in  his  hands.  He  feared 
the  accession  of  the  Crown  Prince,  whose  political 
ideas  more  often  than  not  did  not  coincide  with  his. 
The  intriguers  were  almost  sure  that  the  Crown 


THE  GERMAN  MINISTERS  101 

Prince,  ill  as  he  was,  would  balk  their  wishes,  but 
they  also  knew  that  they  would  find  a  serious  ob- 
stacle in  the  person  of  Princess  Victoria,  who  for 
her  part  wished  to  ascend  the  throne,  if  only  for  a 
few  days !  The  reason  for  this  was  chiefly  a  finan- 
cial one.  As  Princess  of  Great  Britain,  Princess 
Victoria  was  far  from  being  rich.  If  she  were  still 
only  Crown  Princess  on  the  death  of  her  husband 
her  Civil  List  would  have  naturally  been  greatly  less 
than  if  she  became  Dowager  Empress.  It  was  de- 
cided to  try  and  use  the  Princess,  and  to  do  this, 
Prince  Radolin  was  chosen.  Notwithstanding  his 
intimate  relations  and  devotion  to  Frederick,  which 
he  emphasized  on  every  possible  occasion,  he  prom- 
ised his  assistance  to  the  scheme.  As  is  known,  the 
intrigue  failed,  and  the  Crown  Prince  became  Em- 
peror for  one  hundred  days,  but  Prince  William  did 
not  forget  Radolin 's  services.  As  soon  as  he  as- 
cended the  throne  he  appointed  Count  Radolinsky 
Ambassador  to  Constantinople,  and  created  him  a 
prince  of  the  German  Empire,  under  the  name  of 
Radolin.  Later  he  transferred  him  to  the  Embassy 
at  Petrograd,  and  thence  to  the  same  post  at  Paris. 
This  anecdote  shows  the  despicable  intriguing  of 
the  present  German  Emperor  against  his  own  father 
and  mother,  and  it  also  shows  to  how  great  an  ex- 
tent Prince  Radolin  lent  himself  to  acts  that  were 
aimed  at  those  who  had  been  kindest  to  him,  and  had 
benefited  him  in  many  ways. 


102     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

With  Prince  Radolin,  I  conclude  my  short  de- 
scription of  the  principal  German  diplomats  William 
II  chose  during  his  reign  to  assist  him  in  the  execu- 
tion of  his  European  policies.  It  must  be  said  that 
all  these  statesmen  were,  with  rare  exceptions,  men 
of  second-rate  intelligence  and  capacity,  and  only 
useful  in  promptly  executing  their  master's  orders. 
Thus  it  is  obvious  that  on  the  shoulders  of  Emperor 
William  II  must  rest  the  sole  responsibility  for  all  of 
Germany's  foreign  policies  which  finally  resulted 
the  present  world-wide  war. 


CHAPTER    V 

NICHOLAS   II 

His  Character.     The  Ex- Emperor  as  Husband  and  Father.     The 
Empress  and  Her  Influence.     Rasputin — The  Grand  Dukes 

Emperor  Nicholas  II  succeeded  to  the  throne  of  his 
ancestors  under  circumstances  which  but  little  re- 
sembled the  accession  of  his  father. 

Alexander  III  had  found  Eussia  seething  with 
revolutionary  movements  and  dissensions  of  many 
kinds;  his  father  had  been  assassinated;  the  army 
was  disorganized  and  the  navy  conspicuous  by  its 
nonexistence  for  any  practical  purpose.  He  left  his 
son  as  a  legacy  an  Empire  quiet  within  its  borders, 
and  a  nation  respected  by  the  world  in  general.  The 
army  left  nothing  to  be  desired,  and  the  navy  had 
reached  very  respectable  proportions.  But  the  Em- 
peror Alexander  had  pursued  a  reactionary  policy 
and  it  was  soon  evident  that  this  could  not  last. 
Liberal  reforms  were  spoken  of  on  all  sides.  The 
nation  impatiently  awaited  these  reforms  and  cen- 
tred its  hopes  on  the  young  Sovereign. 

Very  soon  after  he  ascended  the  throne,  Nicholas 
II  received  from  all  parts  of  his  immense  Empire  ad- 
dresses expressing  the  fealty  and  also  the  hopes  of 


104     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

his  people.  The  address  of  the  people  of  the  Prov- 
ince of  Tver  (situated  between  Petrograd  and  Mos- 
cow) was  particularly  explicit.  Its  most  funda- 
mental suggestion  was  the  necessity  for  national 
representation.  But  the  monarch  soon  proved  a  dis- 
appointment to  his  people.  At  the  audience  granted 
by  him  to  the  representatives  of  Tver,  he  declared 
that  he  would  continue  the  political  policies  of  his 
father  and  termed  as  "insensate"  the  suggestions 
of  his  people.  The  impression  made  by  the  Im- 
perial discourse  was  disastrous  and  the  popularity 
of  the  Emperor  was  undermined. 
/It  was  quite  evident  to  impartial  observers  that 
Nicholas  II  would  under  no  circumstances  be  able 
to  continue  the  policy  of  his  illustrious  father.  In 
the  first  place,  times  had  greatly  changed,  and  in  the 
second,  the  young  Emperor  totally  lacked  the  char- 
acteristics of  his  predecessor.  Where  Alexander 
III  had  been  firm  and  decisive  in  his  actions — Nich- 
olas II  was  irresolute  and  weak.  From  his  earliest 
childhood  he  had  been  absolutely  under  the  domi- 
nance of  his  powerful  father,  and  had  no  initiative 
whatever.  His  mother  entirely  lacked  strength  of 
character  and  her  influence  was  of  no  use  at  all  in 
helping  to  form  the  character  of  her  son.  He  fur- 
thermore, had  the  misfortune  to  have  as  preceptor, 
General  Danilovitch,  who  was  in  no  way  equal  to  the 
great  responsibilities  of  his  position  and  duties.  He 
was  very  narrow  minded  and  suspicious.     He  eter- 


NICHOLAS  II  105 

nally  told  his  young  charge :  "  You  must  remember 
always,  Highness,  that  everybody  who  approaches 
wishes  to  obtain  something  from  you."  Such  an 
education  bore  its  natural  fruit!  Nicholas  became 
sly  and  suspected  all  his  entourage — even  his  most 
intimate  friends — of  plotting  against  him. 

In  his  youth  Nicholas  II  worked  hard  and,  being 
capable  by  nature,  his  instruction  should  have  left 
nothing  to  be  desired.  But  his  sole  pleasure  con- 
sisted in  frequenting  the  officers'  messes  and  casinos 
and  very  often  he  spent  whole  nights  in  such  places, 
drinking  heavily  and  listening  to  the  songs  of  Bo- 
hemian minstrels.  This  sort  of  existence  was  ob- 
viously not  good  training  for  the  Sovereign-to-be. 
In  military  circles  he  was,  very  naturally,  the  centre 
of  adulation  and  flattery.  Little  by  little  he  be- 
came very  vain,  which  when  taken  in  conjunction 
with  his  natural  weakness  of  character,  was  certain 
to  cause  trouble  in  the  future. 

At  the  time  of  his  accession  then  Nicholas  II  was 
not  a  man  of  very  complex  character.  He  certainly 
did  not  lack  intelligence  and  had  a  natural  kind- 
ness of  heart ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  his  father  had 
utterly  crushed  his  will-power  and  General  Danilo- 
vitch  had  impregnated  him  with  hypocrisy  and  a 
general  suspicion  of  humanity;  in  addition  his 
mother  had  encouraged  in  him  a  lack  of  decision  in 
every  act  which  became  the  tragedy  of  his  entire 
existence.     Very  often  during  his  reign  he  tried  to 


106     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

emulate  his  father,  but  in  vain.  He  was  his  father's 
antithesis — even  in  physique — and  could  not  imoress 
his  personality  upon  the  masses. 

In  his  personal  relations  Nicholas  II  was  delight- 
ful ;  he  had  the  rare  gift  of  picking  out  at  first  glance 
the  most  sympathetic  chords  in  the  nature  of  those 
who  came  near  him  and  he  never  failed  to  play  upon 
these  most  successfully.  The  German  Emperor — 
William  II — experienced  this  on  more  than  one  oc- 
casion. Nicholas  II  had  a  really  extraordinary 
method  of  almost  hypnotizing  those  with  whom  he 
talked ;  he  became  exceedingly  suave,  seeming  to  in- 
terest himself  eagerly  in  what  was  being  said  to 
him,  and  always  agreed  with  the  speaker  no  mat- 
ter what  ideas  were  set  forth.  Moreover,  being 
gifted,  as  are  all  the  Romanoffs,  with  a  prodigious 
memory,  he  would  address  to  the  person  speaking  to 
him  remarks  concerning  his  or  her  intimate  life  and 
circumstances  therein,  which  never  failed  to  flatter 
and  charm.  In  his  heart  of  hearts  he  was  an  auto- 
crat, but  lacking  either  will-power  or  decision,  he 
had  recourse  to  cunning  in  order  to  make  his  author- 
ity felt  or  respected.  When  he  was  displeased  with 
any  minister,  he  never  had  the  courage  to  tell  him 
so  frankly  and  far  less  had  he  the  courage  to  dismiss 
him  personally.  On  the  contrary,  he  surrounded 
the  already  condemned  minister  with  all  sorts  of 
friendly  kindnesses  and  marks  of  esteem.  After 
such  an  audience,  the  minister  naturally  would  re- 


NICHOLAS  II  107 

turn  to  his  home  delighted  with  his  reception  and 
believing  himself  to  be  more  favoured  than  ever  by 
his  Imperial  master.  Very  often,  however,  that 
same  night  would  arrive  a  notification  dismissing 
him  from  office. 

On  one  occasion  Count  Witte,  then  Minister  of 
Finance,  not  being  in  agreement  with  his  master,  re- 
signed. Nicholas  would  not  hear  of  it  and  assured 
Count  Witte  of  his  great  esteem  and  confidence. 
Count  Witte  therefore  withdrew  his  resignation  and 
left  the  audience  in  triumph.  In  the  Ante-room  he 
found  M.  de  Pleske — Director-in-Chief  of  the  State 
Bank,  and  hence  his  subordinate — and  asked  him  the 
reason  for  his  visit  to  the  palace.  Pleske  replied 
that  he  knew  nothing  about  it  but  that  he  had  been 
commanded  by  the  Emperor  himself.  The  next  day 
Pleske  was  made  Minister  of  Finance  in  Witte 's 
place. 

That  was  just  like  Nicholas  II.  Sometimes,  in 
order  to  avoid  painful  scenes,  he  dismissed  his  min- 
isters by  telegram.  Thus,  for  instance,  in " "18977 
the  elder  Goremikine,  then  Minister  of  the  Interior, 
and  in  Europe  on  a  two  weeks'  holiday,  learned  of 
his  dismissal  by  an  Imperial  telegram  handed  to  him 
by  the  station  master  at  the  Russian  frontier,  as 
he  was  on  his  way  back  to  his  post. 

In  his  own  family  circle  Nicholas  was  faithful  only 
to  himself  and  to  those  things  He  deemed  essential 
to  his  own  benefit.     But  even  here  he  was  ever  ir- 


0 

108     RECOLLECTIONS  OF/ A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 


resolute.  His  brother,  the 
his  uncle,  the  Grand  Duke 
will  contracted  morganatic 


Grand  Duke  Michael,  and 
Paul,  having  against  his 
marriages,  he  dismissed 
them  from  the  army  and  deprived  them  of  their  titles 
and  their  incomes  as  Grand  Dukes  of  the  Imperial 
Family.  But,  shortly  afterwards,  he  re-instated 
them  in  their  positions  and  gave  titles  to  their  wives. 
During  his  reign  the  dissolution  of  family  ties 
in  Imperial  circles  became  more  and  more  pro- 
nounced. The  ex-mistress  of  the  Emperor— the 
Dancer  Kchessinskaya — became  the  mistress  of  his 
uncle,  the  Grand  Duke  Sergius,  and  at  the  same  time 
had  as  her  lover  the  Emperor's  cousin,  the  Grand 
Duke  Andrew.  In  the  exrfavourite's  residence  a 
game  of  the  devil's  own  poker  was  played.  Grand 
Dukes  rubbed  shoulders  with  a  crowd  of  interlopers 
and  ne'er  do  wells,  with  women  of  ill  repute  and 
business  men  of  the  worst  character  and  reputation. 
Orders  for  war  material,  railway  concessions  and 
many  other  matters  of  like  character  were  there 
talked  over  and  contracted  for.  The  Grand  Dukes 
haunted  the  cabarets  and  were  seen  everywhere  in 
public  with  the  most  notorious  and  profligate  women 
of  the  demi-monde  and  underworld.  Nicholas  II 
tolerated  these  hideous  excesses  and  members  of  the 
Imperial  family  who  thus  disgraced  themselves  were 
allowed  to  retain  their  high  military  posts  and  ex- 
tensive commands.  It  is  true  that,  at  the  end  of  his 
reign,  the   Grand  Dukes  lost   their  influence  with 


NICHOLAS  II  109 

Nicholas,  but  this  was  chiefly  due  to  their  being  in- 
volved in  the  death  of  Rasputin. 

With  his  ministers  the  Emperor  made  use  of  a 
system  peculiar  to  himself,  based  on  the  principle: 
"  Divide  et  impera. "  When  Count  Witte.  a  strong 
Liberal,  was  made  President  of  the  Council  in  the 
first  Cabinet  (so-called  Constitutional),  the  Em- 
peror gave  him  as  Minister  of  the  Interior,  M.  Dour- 
novo,  the  avowed  and  bitter  enemy  of  Liberalism. 

When  Siolypin  reached  power  he  was  forced  to 
accept  as  Minister  of  Finance,  Count  Kokowtzoff, 
his  antithesis  in  every  way.  Even  Goremikine  the 
elder,  who  more  than  any  other  minister  possessed 
the  Imperial  confidence  for  more  than  a  year,  was 
unable  to  rid  himself  of  several  colleagues  who  were 
most  annoying  to  him,  as,  for  instance,  the  famous 
General  Soukhomlinoff,  Minister  of  War,  who  after 
the  revolution  was  condemned  to  death  for  high  trea- 
son. When  Goremikine  finally  succeeded  in  getting 
rid  of  these  men  he  had  to  put  up  with  statesmen 
in  his  Cabinet  who  were  in  no  way  his  own  choice. 
Continual  dissensions  and  quarrels  were  the  result, 
greatly  to  the  detriment  of  the  government.  Yet 
the  success  of  the  principle  "Divide  et  impera" 
seemed  to  please  the  Imperial  Couple  greatly ! 

The  Emperor  was  not  only  sly,  but  childish.  He 
also  insisted  on  keeping  things  secret  which  were 
ridiculously  apparent.  This  trait  he  carried  into  the 
most  trivial  concerns  of  everv  day  life.     Admiral 


110     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Lomcn,  Chief  A.  D.  C,  attached  to  the  Emperor's 
person,  related  the  following  incident  to  me. 

The  Imperial  Couple  were  in  residence  at  Livadia, 
in  the  Crimea,  having  left  Petrograd  in  September 
for  a  few  weeks  only.  They  changed  their  minds 
however  and  stayed  until  December.  The  Christmas 
holidays  were  approaching  and,  as  the  Emperor  and 
Empress  were  accustomed  to  giving  small  gifts  to 
their  entourage  at  Christmas,  Count  Fredericksz, 
Minister  of  the  Household,  wished  to  know  if  the 
Imperial  Couple  intended  to  stay  in  the  Crimea  over 
Christmas  so  as  to  be  able  to  make  the  necessary 
arrangements  for  obtaining  presents  and  other 
things  necessary  from  the  Capital.  He  tried  in  vain 
to  get  some  sort  of  decisive  answer  from  the  Emperor 
and  therefore  asked  Admiral  Lomen  to  help  him. 
The  Admiral  mentioned  the  matter  to  the  Empress, 
who  promised  to  speak  to  the  Emperor  about  it.  A 
few  days  later  the  Emperor  meeting  the  Admiral 
said  to  him:  "My  dear  Lomen,  you  have  become 
very  curious.  You  wish  to  know  when  we  are  leav- 
ing here,  but  I  shall  not  tell  you."  In  consequence, 
at  the  last  minute,  there  being  no  time  to  obtain  the 
presents  from  Petrograd,  hurried  purchases  had  to 
be  made  in  the  Crimea.  Naturally,  the  only  things 
available  were  objects  of  no  value  and  of  very  doubt- 
ful taste. 

Nicholas  was  the  same  in  affairs  of  State ;  none  of 
his  ministers  could  boast  that  they  really  knew  his 


NICHOLAS  II  111 

mind.  He  changed  it  with  extraordinary  facility  and 
reversed  orders  on  the  morrow  that  he  had  insisted 
upon  the  day  before.  For  example,  he  declared  him- 
self in  agreement  with  Count  Witte,  who  was 
strongly  opposed  to  the  occupation  of  Port  Arthur, 
and,  at  the  same  time  gave  orders  to  Count  Cassini, 
our  Ambassador  in  Peking,  to  take  up  the  matter 
with  Li  Hung  Chang. 

In  1906  the  majority  01  the  Privy  Council  declared 
itself  against  the  dissolution  of  the  Duma,  and  the 
Emperor  readily  acquiesced.  Directly  he  was  left 
alone  with  Goremikine,  an  advocate  of  dissolution, 
immediately  upon  leaving  the  Council  Room  he  or- 
dered the  Duma  to  be  dissolved. 

In  his  relations  with  his  people,  Nicholas  missed 
many  opportunities  of  making  himself  popular.  The 
reason  for  this  must  be  ascribed,  at  any  rate  in  the 
beginning  of  his  reign,  to  his  modesty  which  was 
akin  to  timidity,  but  latterly  to  his  absolute  indif- 
ference. I  remember  when  a  new  cruiser  was  to  be 
launched  near  Petrograd,  the  Emperor  was  present 
on  board  the  yacht  of  the  Minister  of  the  Navy. 
When  he  returned  a  great  crowd  awaited  him  along 
the  docks  of  the  Neva,  among  them  being  a  lot  of 
young  girls  from  a  nearby  boarding  school — all  of 
them  daughters  of  officers— and  a  group  of  wounded 
soldiers  and  sailors  from  neighbouring  hospitals  who 
had  come  to  salute  the  Emperor.  When  Nicholas 
appeared  the  crowds  greeted  him  vociferously.     The 


112     RECOLLECTIONS  OP  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Emperor  lighted  a  cigarette  and  passed  them  all  with 
a  careless  and  a  very  casual  salute,  and  without  pay- 
ing the  slightest  attention  whatsoever  to  the  wounded 
men  who  had  suffered  and  were  still  suffering  for 
him. 

At  the  time  of  the  declaration  of  the  Great  War, 
an  enormous  crowd  of  about  300,000  people  were 
kneeling  before  his  palace  in  Petrograd,  singing  the 
National  Hymn  and  cheering  madly.  Nicholas  did 
not  even  then  know  how  to  make  use  of  this  re- 
markable proof  of  patriotic  sentiment  and,  hardly 
three  years  later  abdicated,  carrying  with  him  only 
the  regrets  of  those  who  had  tried  to  be  of  use  to  him 
and  those  who  had  used  him. 

Had  Nicholas  had  the  good  fortune  to  have  mar- 
ried a  woman  who  would  have  seen  and  understood 
his  weaknesses  and  faults  and  have  tried  at  least 
to  mitigate  them,  the  fate  which  finally  overtook 
him  would  very  probably  have  been  averted.  Un- 
happily for  him,  he  did  not  find  such  a  helpmate  in 
the  Empress  Alexandra.  To  be  sure,  she  did  not 
lack  intelligence,  but  she  carried  her  scepticism  of 
every  one  and  everything  and  her  doubt  of  humanity 
in  general,  even  further  than  did  General  Danilo- 
vitch,  ex-Preceptor  to  the  Emperor.  She  had  a 
special  gift  of  caricaturing  every  one  and  in  this  > 
way  influenced  her  husband  to  a  very  marked  degree. 


Born  in  a  small  German  Court  she  brought  with  her 


to  Russia  its  narrow  customs  and  habits.     She  did  . 


NICHOLAS  II  113 

not  understand  in  the  least  the  part  she  should  play 
in  an  empire  so  vast  as  Russia.  Very  autocratic 
by  nature,  she  only  seemed  to  understand  that  she 
was  at  the  head  of  180  millions  of  people ;  that  fate 
had  picked  out  for  her  a  weakling  of  irresolute  char- 
acter for  a  husband  and  that  she  could,  in  conse- 
quence, govern  Russia  as  best  pleased  her.  She  was, 
as  has  been  said,  thoroughly  and  essentially  auto- 
cratic— even  in  her  own  family.  She  adored  her  only 
son  with  a  tierce  passion  and  was  constantly  in  a  state 
of  terror  about  his  health.  Because  of  this  she  neg- 
lected his  education,  and  the  young  Prince — by  na- 
ture very  sturdy  and  capable — attained  the  age  of 
thirteen  years  without  having  had  a  preceptor. 
Fraulein  Schneider,  a  German  governess,  and  Dere- 
venka,  a  common  sailor,  looked  after  him.  The  Im- 
perial Couple  lived  a  most  retired  life,  admitting 
no  one  to  their  intimacy  but  a  few  persons  specially 
chosen  by  the  Empress,  who  was  not  happy  in  her 
choice  of  friends.  Among  these  I  will  cite  the  famous 
Madame  Wiroubova  and  General  Voeikoff.  Ma- 
dame Wiroubova  was  the  daughter  of  a  man  named 
Taneef,  Chief  of  the  Imperial  Chancellery,  and  was 
divorced  from  her  husband  who  had  been  a  naval 
officer.  She  was  narrow  minded,  dishonourable  and 
very  tricky  and  was  one  of  the  principal  introducers 
to  the  Court  of  the  infamous  Rasputin.  General 
Voiekoff  was  an  "  Arriviste"  and  nothing  else !  He 
sought  to  enrich  himself  through  his  proximity  to 


114     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

and  intimacy  with  the  Imperial  Couple.  He  had 
separated  from  his  wife — who  was  the  daughter  of 
the  Household  Minister— and  had  the  most  detest- 
able and  disreputable  reputation. 

At  the  same  time,  the  mystic  nature  the  Empress 
had  directly  inherited  from  her  mother  was  very 
apparent.  Church  after  church  was  being  built  and 
nearly  every  year  some  new  saint  or  other  was  dis- 
covered. The  Empress,  having  become  more  ortho- 
dox than  the  orthodox,  prayed  for  hours  on  end,  but 
her  prayers  did  not  seem  to  satisfy  her.  She  leaned 
strongly  towards  the  supernatural  and  in  conse- 
quence the  Imperial  Court  was  infested  by  all  sorts 
of  adventurers,  spirit  rappers,  charlatans,  quacks 
and  other  fraudulent  impostors. 

First  there  was  a  certain  "Philip"  who  main- 
tained that  he  was  a  re-embodied  spirit.  He  in- 
voked the  shade  of  Alexander  III  who  dictated  his 
desires  through  "Philip."  Knowing  how  the  Em- 
peror had  been  influenced  by  his  father,  "Philip" 
showed  considerable  perspicacity  and  ministers  fell 
from  grace  without  any  apparent  reason.  One  day, 
seeing  matters  were  being  carried  too  far,  General 
de  Hesse,  Commandant  of  the  Palace,  a  man  of  un- 
impeachable integrity  and  devoted  to  the  Emperor, 
determined  to  put  an  end  to  them.  He  summoned 
Monsieur  Ratchkovsky,  Chief  of  the  State  Police, 
(who  had  held  the  same  position  under  Alexander 
III)  and  asked  him  to  obtain  details  regarding  the 


PRIXCK   VOX    m  EI.OW 


NICHOLAS  II  115 

antecedents  and  personal  history  of  "Philip."  It 
was  then  proved  that  he  was  an  ordinary  petty  crim- 
inal, having  served  a  prison  term  in  France.  Gen- 
eral de  Hesse  hastened  to  report  this  to  the  Emperor 
and  as  a  result  " Philip"  was  expelled,  but  then, 
presumably  to  maintain  his  authority,  the  Emperor 
dismissed  Eatchkovsky  and  General  de  Hesse  fell 
into  disgrace.  It  would  have  been  comic  if  the  end 
had  not  been  tragic. 

After  "Philip"  there  came  many  others  and  last 
of  all  as  an  anti-climax  and  fitting  conclusion  came 
Easputin.     He  was  a  peasant  of  Tobolsk,  in  Siberia. 
His  real  name  was  Novich  and  he  had  had  a  very 
stormy  youth.     Hence  his  name  "Easputin"  which 
means  "libertine."    He  was  reputed  to  have  be- 
longed to  the  sect  known  as  "Chlisty,"  well-known 
for  its  terribly  depraved  rites  and  customs.     Sud- 
denly a  change  occurred  in  him  and  he  abandoned  his 
family  and  his  home  and  went  on  pilgrimages  to 
holy  places— Moscow,  Kieff,  Mt.  Athos  and  even 
Jerusalem.    When  he  returned  to  Eussia  he  began 
to  preach  in  the  villages,  his  doctrine  being  the  duty 
of  personally  inflicted  self-punishment  and  of  plac- 
ing oneself  above  all  temptations.     He  had  a  very 
strange  way  of  applying  his  doctrine.     He  used  to 
collect  some  of  his  women  disciples  and — after  hav- 
ing undressed  them — undress  himself  and  bathe  with 
them.    In  the  bath  he  would  read  passages  of  the 
Scriptures  to  them.     When  the  police  learned   of 


116     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

these  rites,  they  forbade  him  holding  any  more  of 
these  "pious  exercises"  as  he  called  them.  Whilst 
travelling  about  Russia  he  met  a  monk  by  the  name 
of  Iliodor,  who — quite  unwittingly — was  to  become  a 
personality  in  his  sensational  career.  Iliodor  had 
a  certain  reputation  in  Russia  and  had  made  himself 
known  even  at  Court,  by  his  anti-Revolutionary  and 
pro-Czarist  opinions  during  the  elections  for  the  sec- 
ond Duma.  He  was  supported  by  a  Prince  of  the 
Church,  Bishop  Hermoguen.  Iliodor  interested  Ras- 
putin who  had  helped  him  and  he  presented  Rasputin 
to  the  Bishop.  The  latter  obtained  an  introduction 
for  him  to  the  Imperial  Court.  Madame  Wirou- 
bova  became  an  enthusiastic  disciple  of  his,  and  he 
made  a  very  deep  impression  on  the  Empress. 

I  must  admit  that  Rasputin  was  far  from  being 
a  nonentity.  Despite  his  manners  of  a  Moujik  (peas- 
ant), his  filthy  aspect,  and  his  quasi-frankness,  he 
was  very  clever,  crafty  and  subtle.  It  is  said  that  he 
had  hypnotic  powers.  Professor  Sirotinine,  Physi- 
cian to  the  Imperial  Court,  assured  me  that  Rasputin 
in  his  presence,  had  by  a  few  manipulations  stopped 
a  hemorrhage  of  the  Grand  Duke  Alexis  (heir  to  the 
throne)  and  therein  lay  the  origin  of  Rasputin's 
special  favour  at  Court  with  the  Emperor  and  Em- 
press. He  had  persuaded  the  Empress  that,  as  long 
as  he  was  an  intimate  in  the  palace,  the  young  heir 
to  the  throne  would  be  in  no  danger  of  ill-health  or 
accidents.     Fate  seemed  to  lend  truth  to  his  state- 


NICHOLAS  II  117 

ment.  One  day  Count  Kokowtzoff — then  President 
of  the  Council  of  Ministers — had  at  last  persuaded 
the  Emperor  of  the  necessity  of  banishing  Rasputin 
from  the  palace.  Rasputin  was  thereupon  ordered 
to  leave  Petrograd  at  once  and  to  return  to  Tobolsk. 
The  Empress  was  broken-hearted  but,  for  a  wonder 
— Nicholas  stuck  to  his  guns.  Hardly  had  Rasputin 
gone  when  the  Czarevitch  slipped  in  his  bath  and  was 
seriously  ill  in  consequence,  remaining  lame  from 
that  day  to  this.  There  was  a  terrible  family  scene 
and  Nicholas  had  to  retract  his  orders.  Rasputin 
was  recalled.  It  is  generally  rumoured  in  Russia, 
as  well  as  abroad,  that  intimate  relations  existed  be- 
tween the  Empress  and  Rasputin,  but  this  is  abso- 
lutely untrue.  The  Empress  worshipped  her  son 
and  looked  upon  Rasputin  merely  as  his  salvation. 
Furthermore  she  was  attracted  to  this  strange 
peasant  by  his  seeming  frankness — a  virtue  that  she 
absolutely  refused  to  recognize  in  any  of  the  other 
members  of  her  entourage.  The  Emperor  never  in- 
tervened again.  He  said:  "I  prefer  one  Rasputin 
to  ten  hysterical  fits  of  my  wife. ' ' 

I  knew  Rasputin  personally  and  he  certainly  was 
a  nefarious  character.  On  two  different  occasions 
I  had  conversations  alone  with  him.  He  spoke  al- 
ways in  the  shortest  way  possible  and  his  lynx-like 
eyes  continually  avoided  looking  straight  into  mine. 
He  addressed  me  in  the  familiar  peasant  manner  of 
''thee"  and  "thou."     "Yes,  yes,"  said  he  to  me, 


118     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

"I  know  that  thou  wouldst  like  to  know  all  my  doings 
at  Court.  Many  tales  are  told  of  the  Empress  and 
me.  I  know  this.  It  is  infamous.  Yesterday  I  went 
to  see  her.  The  poor  little  thing;  she  too  is  in  need 
of  being  able  to  speak  frankly  with  some  one.  She 
suffers  much.  I  console  her.  I  talk  to  her  of  God, 
and  of  us  peasants  and  she  becomes  calm.  Ah!  it 
is  but  yesterday  she  went  to  sleep  on  my  shoulder." 
And,  after  a  few  moments  silence,  Rasputin  began 
again:  "I  also  saw  Nicholas.  I  took  tea  with  him 
yesterday.  He  gave  me  an  excellent  sweet  and  per- 
sonally filled  my  cup."  Then  winking  leeringly  at 
me,  he  added :  l '  Admit  that  thou  wouldst  very  much 
like  to  know  what  we  talked  about?  It  did  not  con- 
cern politics.  He  has  enough  of  them,  poor  man, 
from  talking  of  them  always  with  the  others." 

Rasputin  was  much  interested  to  know  if  I  would 
publish  my  conversation  with  him  in  the  newspapers. 
He  said  to  me :  "I  know  journalists.  They  always 
write  horrors  about  me.     Thou  must  not." 

From  my  conversation  with  Rasputin,  I  received 
chiefly  the  impression  that  he  was  undoubtedly  very 
cunning  and  exceedingly  able,  and  far  from  being 
frank,  outspoken  and  debonair  as  he  wished  to  ap- 
pear. I  was  also  struck  with  the  fact  that  his  power 
lay  in  the  servility  practised  toward  him  by  some 
of  the  high  dignitaries,  who  fawned  upon  him  in 
hopes  of  favour  and  to  increase  their  influence  at 
Court.    Rasputin  did  not  attempt  to  hide  his  con- 


NICHOLAS  II  119 

tempt  for  them  all  and  treated  them  as  dirt  beneath 
his  feet.  He  wrote  petitions  to  the  various  minis- 
ters on  small  scraps  of  soiled  paper,  knowing  full 
well  that  they  bore  the  importance  of  Imperial  or- 
ders and  insisted  upon  having  his  shoes  and  stock- 
ings taken  off  and  replaced  by  ladies  of  the  highest 
Russian  society  in  Petrograd.  He  had  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  venal.  Personally  I  do  not  believe  it. 
No  one  can  prove  that  he  ever  accepted  large  sums 
of  money;  he  contented  himself  with  small  gifts, 
such  as  silken  shirts,  and  a  few  bottles  of  the  best 
liquors,  of  which  he  was  very  fond,  and  jewels  of  no 
igreat  value.  I  believe  rather  that  the  large  sums 
supposed  to  have  been  received  by  him  really  went 
into  the  pockets  of  his  friends.  He  led  the  most  dis- 
solute life  imaginable  and  was  addicted  to  heavy 
drinking  in  company  with  women  and  girls  of  the 
streets  and  often  spent  whole  nights  in  question- 
able restaurants  listening  to  songs  of  the  under- 
world, of  which  he  was  very  fond.  When  he  was 
drunk — which  was  very  often — he  was  dangerously 
garrulous  about  the  part  he  played  at  Court.  One 
day  in  a  restaurant  in  Moscow,  he  went  even  fur- 
ther than  usual.  General  Djounkovsky,  Governor  of 
Moscow,  therefore  arrested  him  and  made  an  official 
report  to  the  Emperor  himself  of  the  reasons  for 
his  action.  The  only  result  was  the  disgrace  of 
JDjounkovsky. 

Of  course  the  Empress  had  learned  of  the  report 


120     RECOLLECTIONS  OP  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

of  the  Governor  of  Moscow.  It  would  have  been 
thought  that  the  Empress,  rigidly  severe  as  she  was 
in  all  moral  matters,  would  not  only  raise  no  objec- 
tions, but  that  on  the  contrary  she  would  be  the  first 
to  wish  to  get  rid  of  Rasputin.  That  she  did  not  is 
proof  conclusive  that  only  because  of  her  firm  con- 
viction that  Rasputin  was  absolutely  necessary  to 
her  son's  life,  was  he  enabled  to  keep  his  position 
at  Court — no  matter  what  he  did. 

Rasputin's  old  protector — Bishop  Hermoguen — 
having  learned  of  his  depraved  ways  of  living,  or- 
dered him  to  disappear  from  Petrograd  and  to  go 
to  a  distant  monastery  there  to  expiate  his  sins. 
This  advice  of  course  did  not  please  Rasputin,  who 
replied  to  it  by  an  intrigue  against  his  old  friend  the 
Bishop,  which  resulted  in  his  losing  his  see  and  re- 
tiring to  a  monastery  which  he  did  not  leave  until 
after  the  revolution.  At  the  same  time,  Rasputin 
remembered  the  monk  Iliodor  and  fearing  he  might 
expose  him  took  care  not  to  overlook  him  again. 
Iliodor  found  himself  suddenly  persecuted  and 
finally  unfrocked  on  a  false  charge.  He  left  Russia 
and  went  to  Sweden  where  he  became  a  journalist. 

Rasputin  became  more  powerful  than  ever  and  did 
not  hesitate  to  continue  his  vile  way  of  living,  doing 
as  he  pleased  openly.  Several  plans  were  made  to 
get  rid  of  him,  the  ministers  even  daring  to  speak  of 
them  to  the  Emperor.  But  all  in  vain.  The  luckiest 
of  them  made  no  impression  whatever  on  the  ob- 


NICHOLAS  II  121 

stinacy  of  the  Emperor.  The  others  not  so  lucky, 
paid  for  their  daring  with  the  loss  of  their  public 
careers.  Finally,  one  of  the  innumerable  Ministers 
of  the  Interior  during  the  last  days  of  Nicholas  II, 
M.  Khvostoff,  decided  to  rid  Russia  of  Rasputin  by 
violence.  A  regular  plot  was  organized  with  the 
assistance  of  the  ex-Monk  Iliodor— but  it  fell  through 
at  the  last  moment.  M.  Beletzky,  the  Assistant- 
Minister  of  the  Interior,  gave  the  secret  away, 
ifchvostoff  fell  and  Rasputin's  friends  were  backed 
by  Beletzky,  who  became  persona  gratissima  at 
Court.  At  last  some  of  the  Grand  Dukes,  mingling 
with  all  classes  as  they  did,  realized  the  grave  danger 
of  these  abnormal  conditions.  They  saw  the  abyss 
yawning  at  their  feet.  They,  therefore,  collec- 
tively addressed  a  signed  letter  to  Nicholas,  begging 
him  to  rid  Russia  of  Rasputin.  The  answer  of  the 
Emperor  was  laconic :  *  *  I  absolutely  forbid  any  and 
all  concerned  to  interfere  in  my  private  affairs." 
The  answer  was  followed  by  the  exile  of  the  Grand 
Duke  Nicholas-Michaelovitch,  who  was  sent  to  his 
estates  and  forbidden  to  leave  them. 

It  was  then  that  the  assassination  of  Rasputin  was 
decided  upon  as  a  positive  necessity. 

The  following  details  of  his  "Execution"  were 
given  to  me  by  one  who  took  part  in  it : 

A  few  young  people  belonging  to  the  most  aristo- 
cratic circles  of  Petrograd,  among  them  two  mem- 
bers of  the  Imperial  family,  cousins  of  the  Emperor, 


122     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  Grand  Duke  Dimitri  and  Duke  Igor,  met  at  the 
palace  of  Prince  Yousoupoff.  Easputin  was  invited 
to  the  party.  When  he  received  the  invitation,  he 
at  first  refused  it  and  only  accepted  when  the  young 
Prince  Yousoupoff  personally  went  to  get  him  in  his 
private  car.  There  was  an  excellent  supper  and  the 
party  was  superficially  most  hilarious.  Many  of 
the  guests  not  in  the  plot  were  dead  drunk.  Eas- 
putin, very  drunk,  began  to  dance  as  was  his  custom. 
At  that  moment  the  first  shot  was  fired  by  the  Prince 
Yousoupoff.  Easputin,  wounded,  attempted  to  es- 
cape and,  as  he  was  a  very  powerful  man,  a  terrific 
struggle  took  place.  Finally  he  was  struck  down. 
There  were  eleven  men  in  the  plot  and  they  all  set 
upon  the  fallen  man,  repeatedly  stabbing  him  wher- 
ever they  could  get  knives  or  daggers  into  his  face 
and  body.  The  horribly  slashed  and  irrecognizable 
body  was  covered  with  Easputin 's  great  cape, 
bundled  into  a  motor  car  by  three  of  the  young  men, 
and  thrown  into  a  canal  outside  Petrograd.  The 
body  was  dragged  out  the  next  day.  When  the  Em- 
press heard  the  news  she  went  into  hysterics;  she 
burst  into  violent  weeping,  screaming  wildly: 
"They  have  killed  our  only  friend."  Dressed  as  a 
Sister  of  Charity  and  accompanied  by  Mme.  Wir- 
oubova — she  visited  one  of  the  public  hospitals  of 
the  city  where  all  that  was  left  of  Easputin  had  been 
taken.  She  knelt  beside  the  body  and  remained  there 
a  long  time,  praying. 


NICHOLAS  II  123 

The  next  morning  the  remains  of  ''the  only 
friend"  were  removed  to  the  Imperial  residence  of 
Tsarkoe-Seloe  and  buried  in  a  plot  of  ground  be- 
longing to  Mnie.  Wiroubova.  A  church  was  imme- 
diately ordered  to  be  built  on  the  spot  with  the  altar 
placed  exactly  over  Rasputin's  grave.  When  the 
revolution  broke  out,  however,  the  body  was  ex- 
humed and  sent  to  Tobolsk,  where  it  was  buried 
very  simply  in  the  village  where  Rasputin  was  born. 

The  Empress  demanded  that  the  assassins  of  Ras- 
putin should  be  punished  in  an  exemplary  way ;  but, 
in  view  of  the  delicacy  of  the  situation,  the  Emperor 
contented  himself  with  sending  Duke  Dimitri  to  our 
army  in  Persia  and  Prince  Yousoupoff — married  to 
a  Grand  Duchess  of  Russia — he  exiled  to  his  estates, 
forbidding  him  to  leave  them. 

Thus  Russia  was  finally  freed  from  a  highly  dan- 
gerous personality.  A  curious  detail  was  told  me 
afterwards  by  one  of  Rasputin's  intimates.  Raspu- 
tin, it  seems,  had  always  foreseen  a  tragic  death  for 
himself  and  had  said:  "If  I  die  it  will  mean  the 
end  of  Czarism  for  ever." 

Rasputin's  power  had  lasted  more  than  six  years 
and,  during  this  time,  nominations  to  the  highest 
posts  in  the  Empire  were  made  through  his  influence. 
The  Chief  of  the  Diocese  of  Petrograd,  Teterem,  an 
adventurer  pure  and  simple  and  a  man  of  the  most 
depraved  morals,  had  attained  the  highest  rank 
solely  on  account  of  Lis  friendship  with  Rasputin. 


124     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

A  monk,  by  name  of  Varnava — a  peasant  without 
any  education  whatsoever — on  the  same  account  was 
made  an  archbishop.  The  Procurator  of  the  Holy 
Synod,  M.  de  Sabler,  was  Rasputin's  Master  of  the 
Chamber.  Count  Kokowstzoff,  having  refused  to 
ask  favours  of  Rasputin  and  having  been  instru- 
mental in  getting  him  exiled  to  Tobolsk,  lost  his  posi- 
tion as  President  of  the  Council  solely  through  an 
intrigue  engineered  by  Rasputin.  The  nomination 
of  Sturmer  as  premier  was  also  Rasputin's  work,  as 
also  was  that  of  the  infamous  Protopopoff  as  Minis- 
ter of  the  Interior.  The  last  named  finally  provoked 
the  revolution. 

In  domestic  politics  Rasputin  always  pretended  to 
defend  the  rights  of  the  peasant  classes,  but  in  his 
heart  of  hearts  he  was  in  sympathy  with  all  violent 
and  reactionary  principles. 

In  foreign  politics — for  Rasputin  even  had  his 
dirty  fingers  in  that  pie — he  was  against  the  present 
war  and  worked  for  peace. 

As  is  obvious  from  the  foregoing,  Rasputin's 
tenure  of  power  was  solely  due  to  the  Empress.  It 
was  she  who  protected  him,  and  who,  for  one  reason 
or  another,  supported  him  against  the  wishes  of  the 
Russian  people,  taking  advantage  of  the  Emperor's 
characteristic  weakness  in  this  connection,  as  in  all 
others. 

Count  Osten-Sacken,  therefore,  was  quite  right 
when  he  called  the  Empress  ' '  tiie  Evil  Fortune  of 


NICHOLAS  II  125 

JSussia."     She  was  the  chief  cause  and  author  of 
the  fall  of  the  Romanoff  dynasty. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  Nicholas  II  the 
Grand  Dukes  still  had  certain  parts  to  play,  being 
the  Heads  of  Departments  in  some  of  the  Adminis- 
trative Bureaux.  But,  after  a  terrible  verbal  at- 
tack in  the  Duma  by  M.  Goutchkoff,  who  was  the 
first  Minister  of  War  after  the  revolution,  the  Grand 
Dukes — although  maintaining  their  positions  for  a 
short  time,  to  all  intents  and  purposes  lost  them. 
Two  of  them,  nevertheless,  played  prominent  parts 
up  to  the  very  last  days  of  the  reign  of  Nicholas  II. 
These  were  the  Grand  Dukes  Michael  and  Nicholas. 
The  latter,— son  of  the  Field  Marshal  of  the  Turk-, 
ish  war,  had  worked  hard  in  the  Military  Academy 
and  had  the  reputation  of  being  a  first-class  cavalry 
officer.  Brutal,  and  a  hard  drinker,  he  was  by  no 
means  a  favourite  with  the  troops  when  he  com- 
manded the  Imperial  Guard  in  Petrograd.  Never- 
theless, when  the  Great  War  broke  out,  public  opin- 
ion selected  him  almost  unanimously  as  Commander 
in  Chief  of  the  army  and,  notwithstanding  his  de- 
sire to  put  himself  at  its  head,  the  Emperor  agreed 
to  the  wishes  of  the  people.  Despite  his  past;  the 
Grand  Duke  soon  became  the  idol  of  the  masses. 
He  had  great  force  of  character  which  pleased  them, 
as  they  were  weary  of  the  feebleness  and  incessant 
indecision  of  the  Emperor.  His  early  triumphal 
march   through    Galicia    added    to   his    popularity. 


126     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  Emperor  became  jealous  of  him  and  after  the 
great  retreat  of  the  Kussian  army,  dismissed  the 
Grand  Duke  and  took  command  himself.  But  the 
Grand  Duke  had  not  lost  his  popularity  in  the  army, 
where  it  was  perfectly  well  known  that  the  ill-fortune 
of  the  Russian  arms  were  not  due  to  the  Grand  Duke, 
but  to  the  treachery  of  the  Minister  of  "War  and  his 
intrigues.  The  Grand  Duke  Nicholas  is,  perhaps, 
the  only  member  of  the  ex-Imperial  family — with  the 
exception  of  the  Grand  Duke  Michael — who  has  not 
entirely  lost  a  certain  popularity  with  the  masses  and 
the  army. 

The  Grand  Duke  Michael,  only  brother  of  the 
Emperor,  morganatically  married  a  divorced  lady, 
Wolfins  by  name,  whose  husband  was  the  Grand 
Duke's  most  intimate  friend  in  his  regiment. 
Grand  Duke  Michael  carefully  ignored  all  matters 
of  state,  but  people  who  knew  him  well  gave  him  a 
character  of  the  utmost  loyalty  and  integrity,  dia- 
metrically opposed  to  that  of  his  brother.  During 
the  Great  War  he  commanded  a  Caucasian  Division 
and  it  accomplished  much.  The  dignified  way  in 
which  he  refused  to  accept  the  throne  without  the 
sanction  of  the  people  gained  him  their  greatest 
respect.  Nevertheless,  it  is  doubtful  even  if  a 
restoration  took  place — an  extremely  unlikely  con- 
tingency— whether  he  could  ascend  the  throne,  as  his 
morganatic  marriage  is  a  serious  obstacle  to  his 
becoming  Emperor. 


NICHOLAS  II  127 


The  unpopularity  of  the  other  Grand  Dukes  with 
the  nation  is  so  notorious  that  their  fate  is  sealed. 
It  seems  as  if  the  Romanoff  dynasty  really  ended  in 
the  person  of  Alexander  III. 


CHAPTER  VI 

FOREIGN   POLICY    OF   NICHOLAS   II 
Relations  with  William  II  of  Germany 

To  review  the  foreign  policy  of  Russia  during  the 
reign  of  Nicholas  II  it  is  necessary  to  begin  with  our 
relations  with  Germany. 

As  has  been  explained  already  the  death  of  Alex- 
ander III  was  a  great  relief  to  William  II,  Emperor 
of  Germany.  Feeling  himself  rid  of  this  obstacle 
in  his  path,  William  hoped  to  revenge  himself  for 
imaginary  humiliations  in  the  past,  and  assume  the 
role  of  protector  and  mentor  to  his  successor.  He 
relied  upon  the  weakness  of  Nicholas  II,  but  forgot 
the  other  characteristics  of  his  flexible  temperament. 
Moreover,  the  two  Empresses  having  both  come  from 
small  German  Courts,  were  themselves  in  continual 
rivalry. 

The  first  interview  of  Nicholas  and  William,  in 
1896,  at  Breslau,  was  a  complete  farce.  A  few  days 
before  the  meeting  a  photograph  of  the  two  monarchs 
was  circulated  in  Germany,  it  was  said,  by  order 
of  Emperor  William,  which  represented  the  German 
Sovereign  as  almost  a  head  taller  than  the  Russian — 

128 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         129 

whereas  they  are  about  the  same  height.  Nicholas 
was  much  displeased  and  an  order  was  given  the 
Russian  Embassy  to  buy  the  negative  and,  if  pos- 
sible, all  prints  in  circulation.  This  was  a  bad  be- 
ginning. At  the  military  review  at  Breslau, 
Nicholas,  following  the  usual  custom,  wore  a  Prus- 
sian uniform,  with  the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Prussian 
Black  Eagle.  William  II  naturally  appeared  in 
Prussian  uniform,  but  did  not  wear  the  Grand 
Cordon  of  the  Russian  Order  of  St.  Andrew;  more- 
over, William  continually  spurred  his  horse  so  that 
Nicholas  II  might  not  by  any  chance  get  ahead  of 
him.  All  these  seemingly  trivial  details  did  not 
escape  the  Russian  Emperor,  and  as  a  result  the 
"raison  d'etre"  of  the  interview  between  the  two 
Monarchs  fell  through  completely.  Nicholas  went 
home  feeling  very  bitter  against  his  German  neigh- 
bour and  this  sentiment  was  stimulated  by  the  influ- 
ence of  his  mother  and  even  of  his  wife  who,  though 
she  was  a  German — had  a  pronounced  personal 
antipathy  for  William  II. 

A  year  after  the  meeting  at  Breslau,  Nicholas  went 
to  Darmstadt  and  purposely  went  by  a  route  which 
did  not  pass  through  Berlin.  William,  who  had  ex- 
pected another  meeting  to  be  held,  this  time  in  his 
capital,  was  furious.  He  complained  bitterly  of  the 
matter  to  the  Grand  Duke  Michael,  great  uncle  of  the 
Russian  Emperor,  who  happened  to  be  in  Berlin  at 
this  time.     William  was  even  more  explicit  to  the 


130     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Count  de  Pahlen,  Charge  d 'Affaires  during  the  ab- 
sence of  Count  Osten-Sacken.  He  spoke  heatedly 
and  angrily  of  his  relations  with  the  Kussian 
Sovereign,  accusing  him  of  rudeness  in  coming  to 
Germany  without  paying  his  respects  to  him,  and 
carried  away  by  his  anger,  went  so  far  as  to  say: 
"Nikky  is  becoming  impossible!  He  smokes  ciga- 
rettes, plays  tennis  all  day  at  Darmstadt  and  calls 
that  ruling  his  nation." 

Count  Pahlen  reported  this  verbatim  to  Count 
Muravieff,  then  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  who  had 
accompanied  the  Eussian  Emperor  to  Darmstadt. 
He,  in  turn,  told  the  Emperor.  In  consequence, 
Pahlen  had  to  resign  his  post  in  disgrace,  and  rela- 
tions between  the  two  Sovereigns  grew  still  less 
cordial. 

The  German  Emperor  realized  he  had  gone  too 
far.  He  promptly  went  to  Darmstadt  and  radiated 
with  amiability,  not  only  toward  the  Emperor  and 
Empress,  but  also  towards  the  Count  of  Hesse  whom 
heretofore  he  could  not  bear. 

On  his  part,  Nicholas  pretended  complete  igno- 
rance of  all  that  had  happened  at  Berlin  and  was 
most  courteous  and  agreeable,  but  the  bad  feeling 
between  the  two  Monarchs  was  only  veneered  and 
was  certain  to  show  itself  again  at  the  first  oppor- 
tunity. 

In  the  autumn  of  1898  Nicholas  again  visited 
Darmstadt,  having  followed  the  same  itinerary  as 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OP  NICHOLAS  II         131 

before  so  as  to  avoid  passing  through  Berlin.  This 
time,  the  German  Emperor  insisted  upon  an  official 
interview,  and  as  Nicholas  owed  him  a  formal  visit, 
he  could  not  again  avoid  it.  It  was,  therefore,  de- 
cided that  the  Emperor  and  Empress  should  return 
to  Petrograd  via  Potsdam  near  Berlin  and  stop 
over  a  few  hours.  This  meeting  turned  out  even 
worse  than  the  previous  one  at  Breslau.  This  time 
the  greatest  blame  rested  with  Empress  Alexandra. 

Two  weeks  before  the  meeting  of  the  Sovereigns, 
Princess  Golitzine,  Grand  Mistress  of  the  Russian 
Court,  wrote  to  Countess  Osten-Sacken — the  wife  of 
the  Eussian  Ambassador  in  Berlin,  asking  if  the 
German  Court  would  wear  mourning  at  the  forth- 
coming meeting.  The  enquiry  was  somewhat 
strange.  The  Russian  Court,  as  a  matter  of  fact  was 
in  mourning  for  the  Grand  Duke  George, — brother 
of  the  Emperor, — but,  as  he  had  been  dead  for  ten 
months,  the  mourning  worn  was  purely  a  family 
affair  and  therefore  not  at  all  obligatory  on  the  Ger- 
man Court.  The  Countess  Osten-Sacken  however 
mentioned  the  matter  to  the  Countess  Brockdorf, 
Grand  Mistress  of  the  German  Court.  The  answer 
returned  was  incisive:  "To  receive  the  Empress 
of  Russia  the  German  Empress  will  wear  her  hand- 
somest gown  and  also  all  her  jewels." 

Countess  Osten-Sacken  received  from  Princess 
Golitzine  a  second  letter  shortly  after  stating  that 
"The  Empress  Alexandra  of  Russia  insists  that  the 


132     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

ladies  of  the  Russian  Embassy  wear  full  mourning 
at  the  forthcoming  meeting."  The  Countess  in  her 
answer  to  this  communication  "permitted  herself  to 
call  attention  to  the  fact  that  an  order  of  this  kind 
was  somewhat  contrary  to  diplomatic  usage,  which, 
— in  matters  relating  to  official  mourning — demanded 
that  the  customs  of  the  Court  to  which  the  Em- 
bassy was  accredited  must  be  followed. ' '  The  Ger- 
man Court  had,  it  is  true,  ordered  three  weeks  of 
official  mourning  after  the  Grand  Duke's  death  but 
these  had  elapsed  many  months  previously.  Count- 
ess Osten-Sacken  expressed  the  fear  that  a  Russian 
Embassy  in  mourning  would  have  a  bad  effect,  but 
Empress  Alexandra,  stubborn  as  usual,  would  listen 
to  no  excuses  or  arguments. 

In  yet  a  third  letter  Princess  Golitzine  issued  the 
order  of  the  Empress  to  the  ladies  of  the  Embassy 
that  they  be  dressed — "not  in  mourning,  but  in 
black."  However,  decollete  dresses  and  pearls  were 
permitted  as  ornaments,  as  a  concession. 

The  gala  dinner  was  a  rare  spectacle.  The  Em- 
press of  Germany  appeared  in  a  flaring  yellow  dress 
with  the  gorgeous  and  famous  ruby  and  diamond 
head  dress  of  the  Crown  of  Prussia.  The  Russian 
Empress,  on  the  other  hand,  wore  a  severely  plain, 
entirely  black  dress  trimmed  with  crepe  and  having 
no  relieving  colour  at  all.  As  ornaments  she  wore 
a  single  string  of  pearls  alone.     The  ladies  of  our 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II  133 

Embassy  in  their  black  dresses  looked  like  splashes 
of  ink  in  comparison  with  the  dazzlingly  brilliant 
costumes  worn  by  the  ladies  in  attendance  on  the 
German  Empress. 

The  dinner  was  a  sombre  affair.  Ordinarily  very 
loquacious  and  gay,  Emperor  William  did  not  say 
one  word,  merely  lifting  his  glass  at  the  last  in  a 
silent  toast  to  his  Imperial  guests. 

The  departure  of  the  Russian  Emperor  and  Em- 
press was  arranged  for  10  p.  m.  that  night  and  it 
poured  with  rain.  According  to  custom  the  two 
Ambassadors  preceded  the  Imperial  Party  to  the 
station  in  order  to  receive  them.  To  my  great  as- 
tonishment, the  Empress  Alexandra  came  to  the  sta- 
tion accompanied  by  Countess  Brockdorff;  the  Em- 
press of  Germany  was  brilliantly  conspicuous  by  her 
absence.  She  had  excused  herself  for  not  going  to 
the  station  on  the  ground  that  the  Prince  Royal  of 
Sweden  was  coming  to  see  her  that  same  evening  and 
she  had  to  change  her  dress !  The  two  Emperors  fol- 
lowed later.  I  was  standing  near  Count  Osten- 
Sacken  when  Nicholas  II  approached,  and  in  conse- 
quence, plainly  overheard  his  conversation.  He  cer- 
tainly was  by  no  means  pleased,  and  did  not  attempt 
to  hide  or  restrain  his  indignation.  "What  an  im- 
pertinence ! ' '  said  he  to  the  Ambassador.  ' '  The  idea 
of  allowing  my  wife  to  drive  off  with  a  Countess  of 
God  knows  what !     Imagine  making  such  an  excuse 


134     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

as  the  fact  that  she  had  to  change  her  toilette. ' '  And 
he  again  repeated  angrily:  ''What  an  imperti- 
nence." 

It  all  seems  very  trivial,  bnt  it  shows  how  trivial- 
ities affected  the  relations  between  the  two  sover- 
eigns, and  in  consequence  it  was  but  natural  that  the 
conversations  which  had  taken  place  between  Prince 
von  Buelow,  the  German  Chancellor,  and  Count 
Muravieff,  the  Russian  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs, 
could  not  make  up  for  the  increased  lack  of  cordiality 
between  the  two  Emperors.  This  state  of  affairs 
was  destined  to  have  disastrous  results.  His  amour 
propre  deeply  wounded,  Nicholas  tried  to  annoy  and 
hamper  his  German  neighbour  by  every  means  in  his 
power.  Another  seeming  triviality  is  an  excellent 
example  of  the  character  of  the  Monarchs. 

The  German  Emperor  having  appointed  himself  a 
Field  Marshal  of  his  army  and  belonging  also  to  the 
Austro-Hungarian  army,  Emperor  Franz  Joseph 
sent  an  Archduke  to  present  him  with  a  baton  as 
Field  Marshal  of  the  Austro-Hungarian  army.  As 
he  was  also  attached  likewise  to  the  Russian  armies 
with  the  rank  of  General  it  was  natural  that  he  should 
also  be  created  Field  Marshal  of  the  Russian  army — 
but  the  Russian  Emperor  only  sent  him,  by  the  per- 
son of  Prince  Engalitcheff,  Military  Attache  at  Ber- 
lin, a  pair  of  epaulettes  with  his  rank  inscribed 
thereon.  The  baton  of  Field  Marshal  was  forgotten 
by  the   Russian   Emperor!    William  was   furious. 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         135 

He  hurried  at  once  to  our  embassy  and  said  to  poor 
Count  Osten-Sacken — who  seemed  ever  fated  to  bear 
the  blame  of  his  master's  caprices — " Monsieur 
l'Ambassadeur!  Will  you  be  so  kind  as  to  explain 
to  me  what  rank  I  have  in  the  Russian  Army?  I  am 
a  General  with  the  epaulettes  of  Field  Marshal  with- 
out possessing  the  insignia  of  that  rank." 

A  few  months  after  this  Nicholas  sent  him  the 
coveted  baton,  ornamented  with  especially  magnifi- 
cent diamonds.  But  the  gift  did  not  remove  the 
unpleasant  impression  left  in  the  German  Emperor's 
mind. 

Here  is  another  instance :  The  Emperor  William 
was  Honorary  Colonel  of  two  Russian  regiments, 
both  of  them  infantry.  More  than  once  he  had  ex- 
pressed a  desire  to  become  colonel  of  a  cavalry 
regiment, — especially  of  Hussars.  Count  Osten- 
Sacken  as  well  as  our  Military  Attache  at  Berlin — 
made  this  desire  known  to  the  proper  authorities  in 
Petrograd  and  shortly  after  Nicholas  appointed  the 
German  Emperor  Colonel  in  a  cavalry  regiment — 
but  it  was  in  a  regiment  that  had  figured  largely  in 
history  in  the  taking  of  Berlin  during  the  Seven 
Years '  War,  when  Prince  Soltikoff,  commanding  the 
armies  of  the  Empress  Elizabeth,  after  having  van- 
quished Frederick  the  Great  at  Kunersdorf,  made 
his  triumphal  entry  into  the  Prussian  capital.  This 
detail,  small  as  it  was,  had  a  most  unpleasant  effect 
on  the  German  Emperor,  because  he  understood  at 


136     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

once  that  the  Russian  Emperor  intended   it   is  a 
sneering  insult. 

On  his  side,  Emperor  William  in  his  relations  with 
the  Russian  Court,  gradually  adopted  a  special  sys- 
tem of  his  very  own.     He  not  only  redoubled  his  ami- 
able attentions  towards  the  Russian  Sovereigns,  and 
named  both  the  Emperor  and  Empress,  Hon.  Col- 
onels of  the  crack  regiments  of  the  Imperial  Prussian 
Guards,  but  took  his  revenge  in  political  fields.     In 
these  fields,  provoked  continually  by  the  German  Em- 
peror, and  ceaselessly  annoyed,  the  Russian  Emperor 
gave  way  on  almost  every  occasion  to  his  arrogant 
neighbour.     Russia  lost  heavily  in  these  exchanges. 
"We  followed  an  entirely  erroneous  and  false  line  of 
reasoning  where  Germany  was  concerned.     Provi- 
dence had  dealt  us  magnificent  cards  to  play  in  the 
great  game  against  the  German  Empire  which  even 
then  was  in  a  continual  state  of  antagonism  to  Eng- 
land.   Realizing  this  and  relying  upon  our  alliance 
with  France,  we  only  had  to  exploit  this  unusually 
promising  diplomatic  situation  and  veer  from  one 
side  to  the  other  just  as  it  suited  us.    We  had  only 
to  follow  the  example  of  Prince  Bismarck,  who  in  his 
day  had  built  his  policies  on  Russo-English  antagon- 
isms.    But  Nicholas'  character,  was  not  sufficiently 
determined  to  follow  a  consistent  policy  of  any  kind. 
In  the  first  years  of  his  reign  he  exasperated  William 
II  by  continually  attacking  and  slighting  his  amour 
propre,  only  later  to  make  amends  in  the  political 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         137 

field  by  making  him  all  sorts  of  ridiculous  conces- 
sions at  his  slightest  request.  Acquiring  the  habit 
of  seeing  Nicholas  always  ready  to  give  way  to  him 
in  the  fields  of  diplomacy,  the  Emperor  William 
naturally  believed  he  could  go  to  any  lengths.  It  is 
clear  that  our  relations  with  Germany,  under  such 
conditions  would  eventually  conclude  with  a  rupture. 

A  few  of  the  Russian  statesmen  tried  to  stop 
Nicholas  following  such  a  fatal  policy.  Count  Witte 
and  Count  Osten-Sacken  both  did  their  utmost.  But 
their  efforts  were  in  vain.  Count  Witte  fell  into 
disgrace  and  the  activities  of  Count  Osten-Sacken 
were  reduced  to  smoothing  over  as  much  as  possible 
the  mistakes  which  were  the  direct  result  of  the  per- 
sonal feeling  between  the  two  Emperors.  If  Count 
Witte  had  remained  in  power,  it  is  more  than  prob- 
able that  a  rupture  could  have  been  avoided  without 
any  humiliation  for  Eussia.  Germany  might  not 
have  dared  plan  her  coup  so  deliberately. 

One  day  after  war  had  been  declared  Witte  asked 
me :  "Do  you  believe  if  I  had  remained  at  the  head 
of  the  government  and  Count  Osten-Sacken  had  been 
in  Berlin  that  Germany  wTould  have  dared  to  en- 
courage Austria  in  her  designs  on  Serbia?" 

Knowing  the  official  mind  of  Berlin  and  the  per- 
sonal ascendancy  Witte  undoubtedly  held  over  the 
German  Emperor,  I  could  only  answer  in  the  nega- 
tive. Unfortunately  Count  Witte  had  lost  his  in- 
fluence  at  the  Russian   Court  and  the   cabinet  at 


138     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Petrograd  continued  its  highly  dangerous  policy  of 
continually    giving    way    to    Germany.    In    Count 
Witte's  days  of  power  we  had  successfully  resisted 
the  Bagdad  railway  project,  which  had  been  designed 
to  open  oriental  ports  to  Germany.    We  had  ob- 
tained a  large  financial  representation  for  ourselves 
and  France  in  this  enterprise.     When  Witte  fell  into 
disgrace,  and  Count  Osten-Sacken,  ill  and  tired  out, 
was  only  a  shadow  of  his  former  great  self,  M. 
Sazonoff,  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  promised  Ber- 
lin to  link  Teheran  with  Bagdad  by  a  railway  to  be 
built  by  Russia  at  her  own  expense !    Nothing  of  the 
fear  of  Russia  which  had  existed  in  Berlin  in  the 
davs    of    Alexander    III    remained.     The    German 
statesmen  spoke  of  us  in  the  most  cynical  terms. 
For  instance,  M.  von  Miquel — the  famous  revolu- 
tionary of  1848  and  the  none  the  less  famous  Minister 
of  Finance  in  Prussia — said  to  me  personally: — "I 
do  not  at  all  agree  with  my  Emperor,  on  questions 
of  our  colonial  policies.     Our  expansion  along  such 
lines  needs  a  great  commercial  fleet  and  that,  in  turn, 
would  necessitate  our  having  a  very  large  war  fleet 
adequately  to  protect  it.     I  have  expressed  my  fears 
to  the  Emperor  that  our  present  colonial  policy  can 
very  well  get  us  into  serious  and  grave  complications 
with  England.     Why,  I  asked  the  Emperor,  hunt  for 
colonies  across  the  seas  when  we  have  so  fine  a  one 
as  Russia  at  our  very  doors?" 

Such  words  prove  how  much  ground  we  had  lost 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         139 

in  Berlin  in  a  few  years  of  not  only  essentially  bad 
but  also  weak  policies  and  diplomacy.  The  exploita- 
tion of  Russia  by  our  near  neighbour  advanced  with 
rapid  strides.  German  factories  absorbed  most  of 
the  orders  given  for  our  military  and  naval  neces- 
saries— to  the  great  detriment  of  France  our  ally. 
When  the  slightest  obstacle  arose  to  Russian  orders 
being  placed  in  Germany,  the  Emperor  William  II 
hastened  unofficially  to  Russia  to  attend  to  it.  In 
other  words,  he  then  played  the  part  of  a  commercial 
traveller  seeking  to  dispose  of  his  wares.  On  these 
flying  trips  to  the  Russian  court  he  would  arrive, 
laden  with  presents  of  toys  for  the  Imperial  chil- 
dren and  compliments  for  every  one.  He  would  then 
obtain  what  he  wanted  from  Nicholas  and  disappear 
as  suddenly  as  he  had  come.  At  the  same  time,  as 
our  military  and  naval  forces  were  rapidly  growing 
from  day  to  day,  thanks  to  the  enormous  orders 
\  placed  in  Europe,  and  especially  in  Germany,  Wil- 
liam began  to  seek  means  of  paralysing  our  fast  in- 
creasing powers.  He  found  such  means  at  last  in 
'the  Far  East.  It  has  often  been  claimed  in  Ger- 
manophile  circles  in  Russia  that  our  war  with  Japan 
was  due  to  the  cunning  of  British  diplomacy.  This 
"v  is  a  great  calumny.  Our  war  with  Japan  was  due  to 
the  folly  of  a  few  of  our  statesmen  and  to  adventur- 
ers, such  as  Bezobrazoff — who  were  grouped  about 
them.  But,  if  any  foreign  influence  is  to  blame  for 
the  Russo-Japanese  War,  that  influence,  I  do  not 


140     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

hesitate  to  say,  was  the  German  Emperor's  first,  last 
and  all  the  time. 

He  very  cleverly  flattered  the  amour  propre  and 
vanity  of  Nicholas  II  and  urged  Russian  extension  in 
the  Far  East.  About  a  year  before  the  beginning  of 
hostilities,  while  William  was  visiting  our  ex-Sover- 
eign in  the  Gulf  of  Finland,  he  hoisted — on  his  de- 
parture— the  signal:  "The  Admiral  of  the  Atlantic 
salutes  the  Admiral  of  the  Pacific." 

Our  rupture  with  Japan  throws  a  great  deal  of 
light  on  the  policy  and  character  of  Nicholas  II. 

When  our  relations  with  the  Empire  of  the  Rising 
Sun  became  strained,  thanks  to  the  exploitations  of 
the  forests  along  the  Yalu  River  (by  the  clique  of 
Bezobrazofr" — a  new  favourite  of  Nicholas),  Prince 
Ito — a  few  months  before  the  outbreak  of  the  war — 
came  to  Petrograd.  He  was  a  strong  advocate  of  an 
entente  with  Russia,  but  imposed  certain  conditions, 
especially  in  regard  to  Korea.  He  pleaded  his  cause 
in  our  official  circles  and  found  supporters  in  both 
Count  Witte  and  Count  Lamsdorff,  who  was  then 
our  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  Prince  Ito  insisted 
principally  upon  the  cessation  of  the  activities  of  the 
Russian  company  which  was  exploiting  the  Yalu 
River  districts.  He  stated  that  two  policies  were 
open  to  Japan : 

(1)  That  of  an  entente  with  Russia,  and 

(2)  That  of  an  alliance  with  England. 

He   added   that   he   guaranteed   an   entente  with 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICIIOLAS  II         141 

Eussia  on  condition  that  Korean  affairs  between  his 
country  and  ours  were  rearranged,  as  Japanese  in- 
terests in  Korea  were  being  threatened  by  Bezobra- 
zoff  and  his  clique.  Despite  the  efforts  of  Witte  and 
Lamsdorff  the  Bezobrazoff  clique  proved  too  strong. 
Prince  Ito  left  Petrograd  as  no  one  would  listen  to 
him  and  went  at  once  to  London.  Passing  through 
Berlin  he  paid  a  special  visit  to  Count  Osten-Sacken 
and  told  him — evincing  great  emotion — of  the  non- 
results  of  his  visit  to  Petrograd.  As  Prince  Ito  was 
to  stay  two  days  in  Berlin,  our  Ambassador  trans- 
mitted to  Count  Lamsdorff  his  conversation  with  the 
Jananese  Statesman  in  the  hope  that  the  Imperial 
Government  might,  at  the  last  moment,  be  prevented 
from  making  the  fatal  plunge.  But  Count  Osten- 
Sacken 's  telegram  was  never  even  answered!  The 
Emperor  refused  to  make  up  his  mind.  Bamboozled 
by  the  German  Emperor  he  believed  Japan  would 
never  dare  fight  Russia. 

Prince  Ito,  therefore,  continued  on  his  way  to 
London,  where  the  Anglo-Japanese  Alliance  was  then 
and  there  concluded. 

When,  finally,  our  relations  with  Japan  passed 
from  bad  to  worse,  the  German  Emperor  made  a 
great  point — and  in  great  haste — of  warning  our 
Ambassador  in  Berlin  that — although  he  would  main- 
tain his  neutrality  in  case  of  a  Russo-Japanese  war, 
Russia  could  absolutely  rely  upon  the  friendly  sup- 
port in  every  way  of  Germany !     The  Emperor  said 


142     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

among  other  things,  "I  constitute  myself  herewith 
your  Guardian  of  the  West."  It  is  said  that  Count 
Witte  asked  at  the  time:  " Against  whom  will  he 
guard  us  on  the  West?"  When  finally  war  was  de- 
clared the  German  Emperor,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  did 
not  cease  from  overwhelming  us  with  his  attentions ; 
his  actions  even  had  a  bad  effect  in  Tokyo. 

At  the  same  time,  presumably  following  the  adage  A 
of  making  hay  while  the  sun  shone,  the  German  Em- 
peror affirmed  through  his  diplomatic  representative  _ 
at  Petrograd,  that  it  was  thanks  to  his  personal  ef- 
forts Austria-Hungary  had  not  profited  by  the  op- 
portunity created  by  our  Far  Eastern  complications. 
The  German  Emperor  had  his  plans  carefully  laid 
and  made  us  pay  heavily  for  his  more  than  academic 
support,  by  a  commercial  treaty  which  was  dis- 
astrous to  us,  so  that,  through  this  war,  our  indus- 
tries were  at  the  mercy  of  the  German  factories, 
our  fleet  was  destroyed  and  our  military  forces 
paralysed  for  many  years  to  come. 

Such  was  the  German  Emperor's  game — and  it 
must  be  admitted,  he  played  it  well. 

Later,  the  German  Emperor  made  great  use  of  the 
situation  thus  created  in  his  Moroccan  policy  towards 
France,  of  which  I  shall  speak  fully  later  on. 

After  the  conclusion  of  our  war  with  Japan,  seri- 
ous troubles — as  is  well  known — burst  out  in  Russia. 
Out  of  these  the  Emperor  William  made  capital  so 
as  again  to  have  a  close  understanding  with  Nicholas. 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         143 

He  even  offered  the  use  of  the  German  fleet  in  case 
the  revolution  in  Russia  assumed  dangerous  propor- 
tions, and  went  so  far  as  to  offer  a  German  battle- 
ship to  Nicholas,  in  case  he  should  wish  to  leave 
Russia. 

Personally  speaking,  this  idea  of  a  German  alliance 
with  Russia  was  nothing  new  to  me.  When  I  was 
Secretary  at  our  Embassy  in  Berlin,  despite  the 
chilly  relations  which  existed  between  the  two  Mon- 
archs,  the  Emperor  William  had  the  idea  firmly  fixed 
in  his  mind  and  was  convinced  of  its  value.  This  is 
proven  by  the  following  incident : — 

One  day  the  Emperor  William  arrived  at  our  Em- 
bassy in  a  great  state  of  excitement.  He  had  again 
been  wounded  in  his  amour  propre  by  Nicholas.  He 
complained  of  the  Russian  Emperor,  talking  rapidly 
and  loudly,  as  was  usual  with  him  under  such  cir- 
cumstances, and  getting  more  and  more  mixed  up  in 
the  things  he  said.  He  finished  by  making  threats 
against  Russia.  Accustomed,  however,  to  similar 
outbreaks,  Count  Osten-Sacken  remained  perfectly 
calm  and  did  not  reply.  When  William  came  to  the 
end  of  his  tirade,  completely  out  of  breath,  he 
shouted : — 

1  'Well,  have  you  nothing  to  say?" 

And  Count  Osten-Sacken  answered: 

"Absolutely  nothing,  Sire.  All  that  you  have  said 
you  cannot  do  and  you  know  it  as  well  as  I  do." 

"But,    Osten-Sacken,"    snapped    the    Emperor, 


144     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

1 '  You  forget  that  I  have  my  Alliance. ' '  (Referring 
to  his  alliance  with  Austria-Hungary  and  Italy.) 

"Well,  what  about  your  Alliance,"  returned  Osten- 
Sacken,  smiling,  "Do  you  really  know,  Sire,  of  what 
your  Alliance  consists?  It  is  an  alliance  of  a  force 
with  a  weakness  and  an  inconsequential  thing." 

Startled  by  this  retort,  William  paced  up  and  down 
the  room  several  times  without  answering,  then  ap- 
proaching Osten-Sacken  suddenly  he  went  very  close 
to  him  and  said : 

"Very   well,    do   you   want    an   alliance    of   two 

Powers?" 

Naturally  he  meant  Russia  and  Germany  and— 
also  naturally— knowing  full  well  that  the  interests 
of  his  ally,  Austria-Hungary,  were  opposed  to  those 
of  Russia,  he  was  ready  to  sacrifice  Austria-Hungary 
then  and  there. 

In  his  inner  consciousness  he  was  convinced  that 
England,  far  more  than  France,  was  his  greatest 
enemy  with  whom  he  might  one  day  have  to  reckon. 

It  is  to  this  conviction  of  the  German  Emperor 
that  one  must  look  for  the  reasons, — with  the  excep- 
tion of  economic  interests, — for  his  efforts  to  ob- 
tain a  very  close  alliance  with  Russia.  Our  rap- 
prochement with  England  had  been  a  staggering 
blow  to  him.  Iswolsky,  who  was  responsible  for 
that  rapprochement,  was  ever  after  William's  de- 
tested ' '  bote  noire. ' '  But  he  still  hesitated— despite 
the  Anglo-Russian  Entente— to  show  himsell  franki} 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         145 

hostile  towards  Russia.  I  am  very  sure  that  with 
cleverness  Nicholas  ought  to  have  beaten  William  at 
his  own  game,  but  to  do  this  the  Russian  Sovereign 
would  have  had  to  change  his  character  entirely. 
Our  foreign  policies  were  made  and  changed  from 
day  to  day  without  any  definite  programme,  and  our 
statesmen— chosen  by  Nicholas — for  this  work,  were 
none  of  them  equal  to  the  great  delicacy  of  the  situa- 
tion and  the  magnitude  of  their  duties.  The  same 
stupid  procedure  existed  in  all  the  other  government 
departments  in  Russia.  The  gravest  questions  were 
answered  in  the  morning,  and  these  answers  changed 
again  by  night. 

After  the  Russo-Japanese  War,  Russia  was  face 
to  face  with  the  problem  of  rebuilding  her  destroyed 
fleet.  It  was  evident  that  it  was  especially  import- 
ant to  do  this  quickly.  A  man  named  Zacharoff — 
Graeco-Russian  by  birth,  a  French  subject,  very  rich 
and  the  representative  of  the  great  English  firm  of 
Vickers  Maxim  in  France, — conceived  a  project  for 
the  rapid  rebuilding  of  the  Russian  fleet.  This  con- 
sisted in  syndicating  all  our  naval  work  in  France 
and  England,  who  would  thus  be  responsible  for  the 
building  of  a  considerable  war  fleet  for  Russia  in  a 
space  of  from  five  to  eight  years.  The  Anglo-French 
banks  indicated  on  their  part  that  they  would  furnish 
the  necessary  moneys  at  four  and  one-half  per  cent., 
which  was  to  be  repaid  in  fifty  years.  Monsieur 
Loubet,  ex-President  of  France,  was  nominated  as 


146     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

President  of  this  dual  syndicate.  Through  the  in- 
termediation of  M.  Goremikine,  Zacharoff  presented 
his  project  to  Emperor  Nicholas.  The  latter  ac- 
cepted it  in  principle,  warmly  thanked  Zacharoff  and 
conferred  a  high  Decoration  upon  him. 

It  was  decided  that  on  his  next  visit — then  soon  to 
occur — to  France,  the  Emperor  Nicholas  would  meet 
Loubet  and  arrange  the  final  details  of  the  combina- 
tion. Owing  to  the  susceptibilities  of  President 
Fallieres,  Loubet  did  not  have  an  audience  with 
Nicholas  while  he  was  at  Compiegne  on  the  occasion 
of  his  visit.  A  promise  was,  however,  given  to 
Loubet  that  he  would  be  received  by  the  Russian  Em- 
peror at  Cowes,  where  Nicholas  was  going  after  his 
visit  to  France.  But,  probably  because  of  the  in- 
trigues going  on  all  this  time  in  Petrograd  among 
those  who  wished  to  see  the  new  fleet  built  in  Russia, 
in  order  to  keep  the  vast  amount  of  money  thus  ex- 
pended in  the  country,  Nicholas  changed  his  mind  as 
usual — and  the  interview  with  Loubet  at  Cowes 
never  took  place.  All  the  plans  made  by  Zacharoff 
were  thrown  aside  and  went  for  nothing. 

During  the  whole  reign  of  Nicholas,  minister  suc- 
ceeded minister  to  posts  of  responsibility  with  be- 
wildering rapidity.  The  Russian  Emperor  had  nine 
Ministers  of  Foreign  Affairs  during  his  reign  and 
fifteen,  or  more,  Ministers  of  the  Interior.  In  the 
latter  part  of  his  reign  especially,  the  Ministerial 
portfolios  had  become  veritable  political  "killing" 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         147 

places.  Ministers  were  placed  in  power  for  no  rea- 
son known  to  any  one  and  dismissed  in  the  same 
manner.  For  instance,  Monsieur  de  Sturmer,  who 
had  never  known  of  or  had  anything  to  do  with  the 
foreign  policies  of  Russia,  was  suddenly  made  Min- 
ister of  Foreign  Affairs,  only  to  be  dismissed  a  few 
months  later. 

There  were  in  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  men  like 
Maklakoff  (not  to  be  confused  with  the  Ambassador 
appointed  to  Paris,  January,  1918)  who  was  ap- 
pointed solely  because  his  manners  had  pleased  the 
Emperor  while  the  latter  was  travelling  with  him 
and  who  remained  several  years  in  office,  much 
against  public  opinion  and  the  open  hostility  of  the 
Duma,  because  he  amused  the  Emperor's  children 
and  made  the  Empress  laugh! 

In  the  nominations  of  ministers  their  own  politi- 
cal ideas  played  no  part  whatsoever !  Unfortunately 
it  must  be  confessed  that  the  greater  number  of 
Nicholas'  ministers  were  " Arrivistes,"  that  is  to 
say,  men  who  thought  only  of  gaining  a  public  career 
and  to  whom  a  consistent  policy  meant  nothing  at  all. 
Their  sole  idea  was  to  follow  the  caprices  of  their 
master's  mind.  Under  the  circumstances,  it  was 
perhaps  natural. 

The  relationship  between  the  Court  and  the  Duma, 
or  Parliament,  left  much  to  be  desired.  The  fa- 
mous Constitutional  Manifesto  of  October,  1905, 
which  had  instituted  the  Duma,  was  grudgingly  made 


148     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

by  the  Emperor;  extorted  from  him,  indeed  almost 
forced  from  him  by  Count  Witte  at  the  time  of  the 
first  outbreak  of  the  first  revolutionary  movement. 
For  this  he  never  forgave  Count  Witte. 

From  that  time  Nicholas  continually  nagged  at  the 
clauses  of  this  Manifesto.  When  the  Duma  opposed 
him  in  any  way,  it  was  dismissed  at  once  and  with 
extraordinary  facility.  Before  the  dissolution  of 
the  first  Duma,  the  situation  had  been  carefully 
thought  over  before  any  steps  were  taken.  Later, 
however,  and  especially  during  the  present  war,  to 
dissolve  the  Duma  was  mere  child's  play. 

Finally,  there  was  nothing  at  all  left  of  the  famous 
Manifesto!  The  only  article  of  the  Constitution 
which  remained  in  force  was  No.  84,  which  gave  all 
customs  duties  to  the  Crown  in  case  of  dissensions 
with  the  Duma,  or  during  its  holidays ;  and  enabled 
the  Crown  to  govern  the  Empire  under  what  was 
known  as  the  twelve  provisions.  Advantage  was 
taken  of  this  article  84,  which  chiefly  concerned  the 
budget,  to  govern  the  nation  autocratically. 

Besides  the  influence  over  Nicholas  II  held  by  the 
Empress  Alexandra  which  degenerated  into  omnipo- 
tency  during  the  last  twelve  years  of  his  reign,  the 
Russian  Emperor  was  inclined  to  listen  to  the  advice 
of  the  Courts  of  Darmstadt  and  Coburg,  and,  at  the 
beginning  of  his  reign,  to  that  of  Denmark.  The 
influences  of  these  three  Courts  played  an  important 
part  in  our  relations  with  Germany. 


FOREIGN  POLICY  OF  NICHOLAS  II         149 

Nicholas  II  was  very  affectionate  in  his  relations 
with  his  relatives  at  Darmstadt  and  Coburg.  These 
relatives  cordially  detested  the  Emperor  of  Ger- 
many, who  returned  their  sentiments  in  kind  and  re- 
garded them  with  doubt  and  suspicion.  The  repre- 
sentatives of  these  two  Courts  amused  themselves 
by  underlining  and  emphasizing  the  ridiculous  sides 
of  William's  character.  These  petty  tricks  were 
not  unwelcome  to  Nicholas  II,  whose  own  character 
was  flexible  and  unstable  and  who  himself  greatly 
enjoyed  teasing  and  annoying  others. 

His  influence  had  ceased  at  the  Danish  Court  on  the 
death  of  his  grandmother  Queen  Louise.  This  old 
sovereign,  the  "Mother  of  Kings"  as  she  was  always 
known,  had  a  very  powerful  personality  and  charac- 
ter and  cordially  detested  Germany  and  its  ruler  in 
every  fibre  of  her  being.  She  never  forgave  Prussia 
for  despoiling  Denmark  of  Schleswig-Holstein  in 
18C4-.  "William  knew  this,  but  could  do  nothing  to 
remedy  it.  When  he  learned  of  the  death  of  the  old 
Queen,  he  came  to  our  Embassy  in  Berlin  and  said 
to  Count  Osten-Sacken : — "Monsieur  l'Ambassadeur, 
I  extend  my  most  profound  condolences."  Then  he 
added: — "Now  that  I  have  fulfilled  my  official  dutv, 
you  surely  do  not  expect  me  to  cry  about  it,  do  you  ? ' ' 

To  sum  up :  When  he  came  to  the  throne  of  Rus- 
sia, Nicholas  II  had  all  the  gifts  necessary  to  become 
a  great  Sovereign.  His  weak  character,  his  lacka- 
daisical manner  of  attending  to  affairs,  combined 


150     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

with  the  disastrous  influence  of  the  Empress  Alex- 
andra had  as  their  direct  and  fatal  result  the  fall  of 
the  Romanoff  dynasty  and  led  to  the  state  of  anarchy 
in  which  Russia  afterwards  wallowed. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE    ARRIVISTES 

Russian  Diplomats  and  the  Foreign  Policy  of  the  Russian  Empire 
During  the  Reign  of  Nicholas  II 

During  the  twenty  years  of  his  reign,  Nicholas  II  ap- 
pointed the  following  Foreign  Ministers: — 

1.  Monsieur  de  Giers   1894-1895 

2.  Prince  Lobanoff  p,  fowsky   1895-1897  4& 

3.  Count  Muravieff  1897-1901  <M 

4.  Count  Lamsdorff 1901-1906 

5.  Monsieur  Iswolsky   1906-19(10 

6.  Monsieur  Sazonoff 1900-1916 

7.  Monsieur  Sturmer 1916-1917 

8.  Monsieur  Pokrowsky 1917-28th  Feb.  1917 

To  this  list  must  be  added  two  diplomats — Mon- 
sieur Chichkine  and  Monsieur  Neratoff  who  directed 
foreign  affairs  for  a  certain  time,  the  former,  after 
the  death  of  Prince  Lobanoff  and  the  latter  during 
the  incumbency  of  Sazonoff,  while  the  Minister  was 
ill  for  a  year.  The  frequent  change  of  ministers 
was  not  caused  by  any  change  in  the  foreign  policy 
of  the  Empire,  for,  fundamentally,  Nicholas  II  him- 
self pretended  to  be  the  foundation  of  Russia's 
diplomacy.     The  changes  were  due  either  on  account 

151 


152     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

of  the  death  of  the  minister,  as  in  the  case  of  Prince 
Lobanoff  and  Count  Muravieff,  or  to  intrigues  at 

Court. 

Monsieur  de  Giers  had  been  Assistant  Minister  to 
the  famous  Prince  Gortchakov,  the  last  man  who  held 
the  title  of  Chancellor  in  the  Russian  Empire,  in  the 
closing  years  of  the  reign  of  Emperor  Alexander  II 
who  died  in  1881.  After  Gortchakov 's  death  in  1883, 
when  I  entered  the  diplomatic  service  of  my  country, 
Monsieur  de  Giers  was  appointed  Minister  of 
Foreign  Affairs  by  Alexander  III.  He  held  that 
office  during  the  whole  reign  of  that  monarch,  and 
Nicholas  inherited  him  from  his  father. 

Monsieur  de  Giers  essentially  belonged  to  the  old 
diplomatic  school  of  Europe  of  the  19th  century. 
An  accomplished  stylist,  he  was  a  supporter  of  the 
old  methods,  whereby  all  matters  relating  to  foreign 
policies  were  exclusively  attended  to  by  the  diplo- 
matic chancelleries  of  Europe,  the  work  of  which 
was  most  carefully  hidden  in  the  archives  of  the 
official  residences.  He  was  thoroughly  impregnated 
with  the  political  ideas  which  predominated  during 
the  reign  of  Alexander  II.  The  alliance  of  the  three 
Emperors  of  Russia,  Germany,  Austria,  formed  his 
political  creed.  He  founded  his  policy  on  that  of 
Metternich  and  entertained  a  passion  for  Prince  Bis- 
marck, being  very  proud  of  the  friendship  which 
existed  between  the  great  German  statesman  and 
himself.    He   accepted   the   Russian    entente   with 


THE  ARRIVISTES  153 

France  with  ill  grace,  as  it  was  against  his  own 
wishes,  hopes  and  convictions.  He  feared  future 
complications  and  his  entire  diplomatic  activities  had 
ever  centred  in  endeavouring  to  avoid  any  changes 
which  might  bring  about  the  complications  he 
dreaded. 

I  have  remarked  that  his  whole  political  system 
was  based  on  the  motto  of  the  Duchess  of  Offenbach 
— "Above  all  no  scandal  in  niy  beautiful  castle," 
(Surtout,  pas  de  scandale  dans  mon  beau  Chateau!), 
but  it  would  be  unfair  to  leave  the  impression  that 
Monsieur  de  Giers  was  a  man  of  little  mental  calibre 
and  capability.  On  the  contrary,  he  was  very  subtle 
and  clever.  While  I  was  at  the  Russian  Embassy  in 
Berlin  I  was  able  to  study  him  carefully,  through 
his  correspondence  with  our  ambassadors.  In  this 
mass  of  diplomatic  correspondence,  all  of  a  very 
confidential  nature,  Monsieur  de  Giers  very  often 
revealed  himself  as  a  statesman.  His  successors 
would  have  done  well  to  study  carefully  his  letters 
as  they  would  have  found  therein  many  useful  hints 
and  ideas  together  with  many  profound  reflections, 
of  which  they  could  have  made  good  use.  Of  course, 
during  the  reign  of  Alexander  III — an  autocrat  par 
excellence — Monsieur  de  Giers  to  a  certain  extent, 
filled  the  position  of  his  especially  chosen  private 
secretary.  He  had  a  certain  influence  with  his  Sov- 
ereign, who  honoured  him  with  his  esteem.  But  in 
all  matters  relating  to  foreign  affairs,  Monsieur  de 


154     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Giers  instructed  the  younger  men  in  the  diplomatic 
service  on  the  same  general  principles  as  were  laid 
down  by  Prince  Gortchakov.  Such  instruction  natu- 
rally proved  useless  in  the  face  of  modern  conditions 
and  Russian  diplomacy  suffered  accordingly.  Un- 
fortunately the  evil  effects  of  this  system  have  not 
been  eradicated  even  to  the  present  day. 

In  order  to  be  a  good  diplomat,  it  was  necessary 
to  be  thoroughly  conversant  with  the  French  lan- 
guage and  know  how  to  use  it,  and  to  join  the  diplo- 
matic service  it  was  necessary  of  course,  to  pass  cer- 
tain examinations.  These,  however,  were  only  a 
comedy.  The  examiners  were  heads  of  bureaux  in 
various  departments  of  the  Ministry  and,  for  the 
most  part,  having  grown  grey  in  the  service,  they 
had  for  many  years  completely  forgotten  the  details 
of  the  knowledge  which  was  required  of  the  younger 
men,  such  for  example,  as  a  working  knowledge  of 
history,  geography,  statistics  and  political  economy. 
By  custom  the  fate  of  those  facing  this  examination 
had  already  been  decided  before  they  filled  in  their 
papers  with  their  answers.  One  might  be  a  veritable 
well  of  information  and  yet  not  be  accepted ;  or  be  a 
complete  ignoramus,  and  yet  succeed  in  entering  the 
diplomatic  service.  Intrigue  was  the  main  influence 
in  the  examiner's  choice  of  a  future  Talleyrand.  A 
word  from  this  or  that  Grand  Duchess  had  great 
effect. 

The  nucleus  of  the  diplomatic  service  was  the 


THE  ARRIVISTES  155 

Chancellery  of  the  Foreign  Ministry  personnel. 
Monsieur  de  Giers  called  it  his  "Guard."  As  I  was 
a  member  of  this  Chancellery  I  can  explain  of  what  it 
really  consisted.  There  was  nothing  done  there  but 
calculations  and  copying  work,  and  woe  betide  the 
young  man  who  dared  show  any  desire  of  further 
instructing  himself  by  studying  diplomatic  papers ! 
One  day,  in  the  autumn  of  1885, 1  remember  wishing 
to  study  Bulgarian  affairs  more  closely  as  they  were 
at  that  time  in  a  veiy  chaotic  condition.  I  was  pre- 
vented from  doing  so  and  earned  the  reputation  of 
being  a  man  who  needed  watching !  On  another  oc- 
casion, the  Chief  of  the  Chancellery,  Prince  Obol- 
ensky,  to  whom  I  said  I  did  not  understand  the  gist 
of  a  dispatch  that  I  had  been  instructed  to  translate 
into  the  secret  code,  answered  sharply:  "This  is 
as  it  should  be.  You  must  please  remember  that  the 
best  secretary  is  he  who  understands  nothing.  You 
will  succeed  if  you  profit  by  this  hint!" 

It  is,  therefore,  not  astonishing  that  such  a  school 
contributed  very  little  to  the  formation  of  a  brilliant 
Eussian  diplomatic  corps.  The  young  men  in  this 
profession  arrived  at  foreign  posts  without  any 
knowledge  whatever. 

Furthermore,  all  appointments  were  made  through 
patronage  and  with  the  help  of  friends  at  court. 
Our  Embassies  were  thus  filled  with  young  men  who 
might  have  done  very  well  at  Court,  but  who  knew 
nothing  of  the  basic  principles  of  diplomacy.     When 


> 


156     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Monsieur  Iswolsky  became  Foreign  Minister  he  tried 
to  change  this  sorry  state  of  affairs.  A  University 
diploma  became  essential  before  an  aspirant  could 
hope  to  attain  any  position  in  the  Foreign  Ministry. 
But  intrigue  prospered  even  more  than  before  for 
Iswolsky  lent  himself  to  intrigues  of  all  kinds. 

Prince  Lobanoff  had  a  very  strong  character,  but 
even  he  had  to  allow  for  court  intrigue.  When  he 
informed  me  of  his  decision  to  send  me  to  Berlin,  he 
said:  "Above  all  things,  do  not  mention  your  ap- 
pointment before  it  is  officially  published.  Spokes 
might  yet  be  placed  in  my  wheel  if  you  do." 

As  the  health  of  Monsieur  de  Giers  was  very  poor, 
he  surrounded  himself  with  men  weaker  than  himself 
who  could  not  be  used  to  replace  him.  When  finally 
he  resigned,  his  successor,  Prince  Lobanoff,  found 
only  a  lot  of  nonentities  in  the  chancellery. 

Prince  Lobanoff  did  not  resemble  Monsieur  de 
Giers  in  the  least ;  he  was  firm,  resolute  and  authori- 
tative and  had  behind  him  a  long  diplomatic  career. 
He  had  been  Ambassador  in  Constantinople,  London 
and  Vienna.  At  the  last  place  he  stayed  seventeen 
years.  He  was  at  the  zenith  of  his  power  when  he 
was  seventy-five  years  old.  There  had,  however, 
been  an  interregnum  in  his  service  when  he  was 
thirty-two  and  was  Minister  in  Constantinople,  (at 
that  time  Eussia  had  no  Ambassador  in  Turkey). 
He  there  fell  in  love  with  the  wife  of  a  secretary  of 
the  French  legation,  ran  away  with  her  and  fled  to 


THE  ARRIVISTES  157 

Russia,  without  having  asked  for  leave  from  the 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  A  fine  scandal 
promptly  resulted.  It  was  said  that  Prince  Gortcha- 
kov,  at  that  time  Chancellor,  on  learning  of  the  af- 
fair and  knowing  that  the  object  of  Prince  Lobanoff 's 
love  was  ugly,  shouted: — "Could  he  find  nothing 
better  than  that?"  Prince  Lobanoff  had  to  resign 
from  the  service.  However,  thanks  to  his  personal 
relations,  he  was  appointed  Assistant  Minister  of 
the  Interior  and  remained  in  that  post  until  his  ap- 
pointment as  Ambassador  to  Constantinople  during 
the  reign  of  Alexander  III. 

Prince  Lobanoff  was  an  avowed  enemy  of  Ger- 
many and  had  a  pronounced  personal  antipathy  to- 
wards the  German  Emperor  William  II.  He 
dreamed  of  encircling  the  German  Empire  by  an 
alliance  between  France,  Russia  and  Austria-Hun- 
gary. In  this  scheme  he  had  many  supporters  all 
of  them  as  convinced  of  its  feasibility  as  himself. 
Before  being  appointed  Foreign  Minister,  he  was 
nominated  as  Ambassador  to  Berlin.  The  German 
political  world  was  startled  by  his  nomination  as  his 
sentiments  towards  Germany  were  well  known  in 
Berlin,  and  it  was  an  open  secret  that  the  Emperor 
William  had  accepted  the  appointment  of  the  Prince 
very  reluctantly.  The  resignation  and  death  of 
M.  de  Giers,  however/  prevented  Prince  Lobanoff 
becoming  Ambassador  as  he  was  then  appointed  to 
the  office  of  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs. 


158     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  news  of  this  burst  like  a  bombshell  in  Ger- 
many. German  politicians  mentioned  the  name  of 
Lobanoff  in  awed  whispers,  and,  indeed,  the  strength 
of  our  new  Minister  was  soon  visible.  All  Germany 
felt  we  had  returned  to  the  days  of  Alexander  III, 
and  Emperor  William  again  became  of  little  import- 
ance. At  Constantinople,  German  policy  revolved 
round  that  of  Russia.  At  Vienna,  where  they  had 
had  the  opportunity  of  studying  the  character  of 
Prince  Lobanoff,  the  diplomats  kept  quiet.  In 
Paris, — the  Prince  was  an  ardent  admirer  of  France 
— universal  appreciation  was  expressed. 

Prince  Lobanoff  first  set  to  work  to  restore  order 
in  Balkan  affairs.  In  Bulgaria,  Prince  Ferdinand 
of  Coburg  reigned,  but  was  not  recognized  by  the 
Powers — with  the  exception  of  Austria.  It  was 
necessary  to  put  an  end  to  this  abnormal  condition. 
Lobanoff  himself  wanted  Russia  to  recognize  Ferdi- 
nand, but  wished  him  to  take  the  first  step.  He  ob- 
tained the  assistance  of  the  famous  Russian  journal- 
ist, Tatitcheff — author  of  the  Histories  of  Alexander 
II  and  Alexander  III — who  had  at  one  time  been 
secretary  of  our  Embassy  in  Vienna.  Tatitcheff 
went  to  Marienbad  in  Bohemia,  where  he  met  Prince 
Ferdinand,  whom  he  knew  intimately,  and  succeeded 
beyond  all  expectations.  Ferdinand  wrote  an  apolo- 
getic letter  to  the  Emperor  Nicholas  blaming  himself 
for  his  previous  policy  of  inaction  and  asking  for- 
giveness.   He  promised  that  his  son  Boris  should 


THE  ARRIVISTES  159 

enter  the  Orthodox  Church  and  also  from  that  time 
onwards  to  follow  and  maintain  a  policy  agreeable 
to  and  conforming  with  the  views  of  Russia. 
Nicholas  then  recognized  Ferdinand  as  Prince  of 
Bulgaria  and  consented  to  become  the  godfather  of 
Prince  Boris,  when  he  was  baptized  into  the  Ortho- 
dox Greek  Church. 

Russia  thus  won  a  diplomatic  victory  of  consider- 
able importance,  and,  despite  the  fact  that  this  vic- 
tory was  a  defeat  for  Austria-Hungary,  Germany's 
ally,  the  cabinet  at  Berlin  expressed  itself  as  agree- 
able to  Petrograd's  policy.  This  was  the  first  fruit 
of  the  moral  ascendancy  exercised  by  Prince  Loban- 
off  over  Germanic  diplomacy. 

It  was  Prince  Lobanoff,  among  others,  who  advised 
Nicholas  II  to  begin  his  visits  to  allied  and  friendly 
countries  by  passing  through  Austria-Hungary.  He 
did  not  wish,  as  yet,  to  encourage  Emperor  William 
by  any  great  show  of  friendliness  and  the  latter  had 
to  be  content  with  a  visit  paid,  not  to  Berlin,  but  to 
Breslau,  which  was  after  an  official  visit  had  been 
paid  to  Austria-Hungary. 

Had  Prince  Lobanoff  lived  the  interview,  which 
has  already  been  described,  would  certainly  not  have 
taken  the  turn  it  did,  and  the  consequences  would  not 
have  been  so  disastrous.  But,  unf ortuately  for  Rus- 
sia, Prince  Lobanoff  died  very  suddenly  in  the  Im- 
perial train  while  returning  to  Petrograd  from  Aus- 
tria.    The  Empress  Alexandra,  as  I  was  told  by  a 


160     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

witness,  cried  bitterly.  As  she  had  the  reputation 
of  being  an  out-and-out  German  it  seems  curious  she 
should  have  betrayed  so  deep  an  emotion  at  the  death 
of  a  statesman  who  all  his  whole  life,  had  been  abso- 
lutely hostile  towards  the  land  of  her  birth.  I  think 
the  explanation  lies  in  the  fact  I  have  previously 
mentioned,  that  while  the  Empress  was  essentially 
German,  she  was  by  no  means  a  Prussian,  and  that 
she  was  very  far  from  having  her  heart  completely 
filled  with  her  Imperial  husband. 

The  death  of  Prince  Lobanoff  placed  Nicholas  II 
in  a  cruelly  embarrassing  position.  In  a  few  days 
he  was  due  at  Breslau,  and,  knowing  but  very  little  of 
his  diplomatic  personnel,  he  did  not  know  what  to 
do,  or  whom  to  appoint  as  Lobanoff 's  successor. 
Finally  the  Assistant  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  M. 
Chichkine,  had  to  accompany  him.  On  arriving  at 
Breslau  and  descending  from  the  Imperial  train, 
Chichkine  ran  to  me,  crying:  "Dear  Monsieur  de 
Schelking,  do  not  abandon  me.  I  know  nothing.  I 
am  lost!"  Which  were  brave  and  promising  words 
from  a  diplomat  placed  in  such  an  important  posi- 
tion! 

Naturally,  the  German  Emperor  and  his  suite  paid 
Chichkine  every  attention.  This  tickled  his  vanity 
to  such  an  extent  that  he  immediately  concluded  he 
would  become  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  In  con- 
versation with  Count  Osten-Sacken  he  said:  "Do 
you  know,  my  dear  Count,  it  seems  that  in  Berlin 


THE  ARRIVISTES  161 

they  want  me  to  succeed  Lobanoff."  "When  telling 
me  later  of  this  conversation,  the  Count  added:  "I 
can  well  believe  the  Germans  would  be  overjoyed  to 
see  such  a  fool  at  the  head  of  our  Foreign  Office ! ' ' 

However,  Chichkine  fortunately  never  became  our 
Foreign  Minister.  Count  Muravieff  succeeded 
Lobanoff.  His  appointment  was  wholly  unexpected. 
The  new  Minister  had  occupied  in  former  days,  as 
an  official  in  the  diplomatic  service,  many  important 
posts.  He  had  spent  five  years  in  Paris  as  First 
Secretary  and  had  also  been  Councillor  to  the  Em- 
bassy in  Berlin  for  ten  years,  but  he  only  held  one 
post,  as  Minister  to  Denmark,  in  which  no  official  was 
directly  over  him.  This  last  post  was  of  no  great 
importance  as  it  was  out  of  the  path  of  high  politics 
and  the  more  serious  affairs  of  Russian  diplomacy. 
Muravieff  had  the  reputation  of  being  rather  igno- 
rant, having  never  graduated  from  a  High  School,  or 
University.  From  the  archives  of  the  Embassy  at 
Berlin  I  was  astonished  to  find  that  during  his  ten 
years  as  Councillor  there  he  had  only  written  three 
letters  in  his  own  handwriting  and  these,  written  in 
French,  were  full  of  grammatical  and  constructional 
errors.  On  the  other  hand  he  had  a  good  deal  of 
common  sense,  and  extraordinary  self-assurance,  the 
last  being  his  chief  characteristic. 

On  his  way  to  assume  office  in  Petrograd  he  had 
to  pass  through  Berlin.  I  never  remember  having 
seen  a  man  happier  than  he  was  at  that  time.    He 


162     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

radiated  sunshine.  In  his  delight  he  was  eager  to 
do  everybody  a  kindness  and  sent  for  each  of  us 
secretaries  in  turn  and  asked  us  our  ambitions,  say- 
ing he  would  see  that  our  wishes  were  granted.  Our 
Ambassador  gave  a  banquet  for  him,  to  which  came 
the  chiefs  of  the  diplomatic  world  of  Berlin  with  the 
Imperial  Chancellor,  Prince  Hohenlohe,  and  Prince 
von  Buelow  at  their  head.  It  so  happened  that 
Count  MuraviefT 's  luggage  had  gone  astray  and  he 
had  to  appear  at  dinner  in  his  travelling  suit.  He 
was  not  in  the  least  embarrassed  and  showed  perfect 
confidence  in  himself  and  the  impression  he  was 
going  to  make  on  our  Ambassador's  guests.  In  his 
conversation  with  Hohenlohe  and  Buelow  he  steered 
a  very  clever  course,  hiding  his  own  ignorance  of 
affairs  and  avoiding  all  dangerous  subjects  with 
consummate  craft. 

Diplomatic  circles  in  Berlin  were  not  displeased  at 
his  appointment.  His  good  qualities  and  his  weak- 
nesses, which  later  Berlin  proposed  to  exploit,  were 
well  known  there.  Emperor  William,  however,  was 
not  at  all  pleased.  Count  MuraviefT,  when  Council- 
lor in  Berlin,  always  posed  as  a  great  admirer  of  the 
German  Emperor  and  the  latter  had  shown  him 
special  favour.  He  had  given  him  a  large  signed 
portrait  of  himself,  and  added  some  very  flattering 
words  over  the  signature.  But  William  learnt  later 
that  MuraviefT,  while  at  Copenhagen — a  Court  which 
much  disliked  the  German  Emperor — had  made  fun 


THE  ARRIVISTES  163 

of  him  to  please  his  entourage.     Ever  after  he  was 
hostile  to  Muravieff. 

As  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  Muravieff  was 
faithful  to  but  one  person  and  that  was  himself.  He 
had  little  real  personality,  was  very  careless  and  re- 
markably trivial.  How  recklessly  he  treated  the 
very  serious  problem  of  Kiao-Tchao  has  already  been 
mentioned.  In  many  other  matters,  just  as  serious, 
he  acted  in  the  same  way.  His  sole  preoccupation 
was  to  cling  to  his  office  as  long  as  possible.  He  had 
known  how  to  win  the  sympathies  of  Empress  Alex- 
andra by  means  small  in  themselves,  but  large  in 
results.  He  used  to  play  at  being  a  horse  on  his 
hands  and  knees  with  the  Imperial  children,  which 
with  other  similar  tricks  pleased  the  Imperial  Couple. 
As  he  fully  appreciated  the  weak  character  of 
Nicholas  II,  he  became  a  flatterer  of  the  boldest  kind 
in  order  to  gain  his  own  ends  and  in  his  policies  was 
usually  most  successful  in  guessing  his  Imperial 
master's  mind. 

At  this  time  the  personal  relations  between  the 
Russian  and  German  Emperors  were  very  strained. 
Instead  of  endeavouring  to  smooth  over  matters 
Muravieff  added  fuel  to  the  flames  and  in  conse- 
quence Russo-German  relations  became  steadily 
worse  and  worse. 

Realizing  his  own  ignorance  of  diplomacy,  Mura- 
vieff selected  as  his  Assistant  Minister,  Count  Lams- 
dorff,  who,  having  spent  his  whole  life  in  the  Foreign 


164     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Office,  was  a  regular  mine  of  information.  The 
Archives  contained  nothing  he  did  not  know.  Mura- 
vieff  constantly  consulted  him  and  he  astonished  the 
Emperor  by  his  official  reports,  so  great  an  under- 
standing and  intimate  knowledge  did  they  display  of 
existing  conditions  and  circumstances.  Of  course, 
he  took  very  good  care  not  to  tell  the  Emperor  that 
all  his  information  was  supplied  by  Lamsdorff. 

The  Eussian  Emperor  could  hardly  have  chosen  a 
less  profitable  Foreign  Minister.  His  own  irresolu- 
tion and  weakness  found  no  guiding  and  saving  hand 
in  the  personality  and  powers  of  Count  MuraviefT, 
who,  during  his  tenure  of  office  had  no  steady  policy, 
and  no  visible  objective.  His  policy  degenerated 
into  a  mere  series  of  vacillations.  His  enemies 
worked  hard  to  bring  about  his  downfall  and  had  all 
but  succeeded  when  he  died  very  suddenly.  His 
valet  found  him  in  his  study  lying  on  the  floor  with  a 
gash  in  his  temple,  which  had  been  caused  by  his  head 
coming  into  contact  with  the  sharp  edge  of  a  low 
stool  when  he  fell.  In  Petrograd,  it  was  rumoured 
that  he  had  committed  suicide,  being  unable  to  bear 
the  disgrace  of  dismissal  which  he  knew  was  soon 
coming.  Personally  I  do  not  believe  this  to  be  the 
case.  As  a  young  man  MuraviefT  had  been  more 
than  partial  to  women  and  wine  and  had  sown  a  fine 
crop  of  wild  oats.  Despite  his  advancing  years  he 
appeared  to  enjoy  the  harvest  when  he  returned  to 
Petrograd.     He   had   a   mistress   whom  he   visited 


HI  KK    VON     BETHMANN-HOLLWEG 


THE  ARRIVISTES  165 

every  day,  and  he  used  to  drink  a  quart  bottle  of 
champagne  every  night  before  he  went  to  bed.  Such 
habits  were  not  conducive  to  a  long  life,  and  probably 
too  great  satisfaction,  rather  than  dissatisfaction 
with  himself  carried  him  off. 

Count  Lamsdorff,  who  succeeded  him,  wTas  abso- 
lutely his  opposite  in  temperament  and  character. 
Nicholas  II,  The  Unreliable,  could  always  be  relied 
upon  to  appoint  ministers  whose  characters  and  opin- 
ions had  not  the  slightest  resemblance  to  their  prede- 
cessors. Thus  Russian  policies  were  continually 
chopping  and  changing.  Although  far  better  edu- 
cated than  Muravieff  and  with  an  intensive  knowl- 
edge of  affairs  of  state,  Lamsdorff  was  very  narrow 
minded  and  small  of  soul  and  lacked  the  saving  grace 
of  Muravieff — common  sense.  He  was  a  religious 
bigot.  Women  had  never  played  any  part  in  his 
life  and  consequently  rumour  gave  him  the  reputa- 
tion of  being  a  pervert.  He  lent  colour  to  these 
rumours  by  showing  great  favouritism  to  some  of  the 
men  about  him  who  were  for  the  most  part,  strikingly 
handsome  young  men. 

At  that  time  there  was  attached  to  the  Chancellery 
a  very  handsome  young  man,  Savinsky  by  name,  who 
held  the  minor  position  of  Third  Secretary.  Lams- 
dorff noticed  him  and  chose  him  as  his  travelling 
companion  in  the  Crimea  when  the  Emperor  went  to 
Livadia.  Savinsky  returned  from  this  short  voyage 
a  Gentleman  of  the  Chamber  and  Second  Secretary. 


166     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Only  a  few  months  later  he  was  made  First  Secre- 
tary. Lamsdorff  wished  to  make  him  Master  of 
Ceremonies  at  Court  but  found  himself  strongly  op- 
posed by  Count  Hendrikoff,  then  Grand  Master  of 
Ceremonies.  Lamsdorff  insisted!  He  went  so  far 
as  to  threaten  to  present  his  resignation  to  the  Em- 
peror in  case  his  protege  was  not  appointed.  As 
usual,  Nicholas  gave  way  and  consented  to  Savin- 
sky's  appointment. 

One  day,  at  a  gala  performance  in  honour  of  the 
visit  to  Petrograd  of  the  German  Emperor,  Savinsky 
fulfilled  the  duties  of  Master  of  Ceremonies.  Dur- 
ing one  of  the  entr'actes  Emperor  Nicholas,  turning 
to  Admiral  Lomen,  his  aide-de-camp,  who  told  me 
the  story,  said  to  him:  "Point  out  Countess  Lams- 
dorff to  me."  He  meant  Savinsky!!!  The  Em- 
peror showed  that  he  felt  something  was  wrong,  but 
this  did  not  prevent  him  appointing  Savinsky  his 
minister  at  Stockholm  and,  later,  at  Sofia,  where  he 
remained  until  the  declaration  of  war. 

Prior  to  his  appointment  as  Foreign  Minister 
Lamsdorff  had  never  been  beyond  the  confines  of 
Kussia,  not  even  on  a  pleasure  trip.  He  visited 
Central  Europe  for  the  first  time  when  he  accom- 
panied the  Emperor  to  Compiegne,  in  France. 

Lamsdorff  was  popularly  known  as  a  rubber 
cushion  such  as  invalids  use  in  an  inflated  form.  He 
had  been  Secretary  and  Vice-Director  of  the  Im- 
perial Chancellery,  under  Prince  Gortchakoff;  later 


THE  ARRIVISTES  167 

Director-in-Chief  of  the  Chancellery;  then  First 
Councillor  under  de  Giers,  and  Prince  Lobanoff,  and 
finally  Assistant  Minister  under  Muravieff*.  The 
regime  he  instituted  at  the  Ministry  became  paternal 
in  its  effects.  He  was  surrounded  by  nonentities, 
but  he  was  sure  of  them  and  had  known  them  for 
many  years. 

In  his  policy,  Count  Lamsdorff — having  been  a 
great  admirer  of  Monsieur  de  Giers — used  his  meth- 
ods to  avoid  complications.  While  carefully  keeping 
up  the  friendly  feeling  and  intercourse  which  existed 
between  Russia  and  France,  he  also  did  his  best  to 
better  our  relations  with  Germany.  The  result  of 
his  policy  wras  apparent  during  the  Russo-Japanese 
War.  The  Berlin  Cabinet  at  that  time  surrounded 
us  with  favours,  and  Emperor  William  sealed  this 
Nero-Platonic  friendship  with  us  by  a  commercial 
treaty  which  was  disastrous  to  our  industrial  inter- 
ests. Later  he  inveigled  the  Emperor  Nicholas  into 
the  extraordinary  secret  treaty  concluded  at  Bjoerke 
which  the  Czar  afterwards  repudiated.  This  treaty 
when  published  by  the  Maximalists  after  the  revolu- 
tion caused  quite  a  sensation. 

Count  Lamsdorff  was  frankly  hostile  to  the  war 
with  Japan,  and  acted  with  great  courage  and  hon- 
esty in  this  matter.  He  presented  a  long  memoran- 
dum to  the  Emperor,  later  published  by  the  famous 
Russian  revolutionary,  Monsieur  Bourtzeff.  In  this 
memorandum    he    called    serious    attention    to    the 


168     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

grave  dangers  of  any  policy  which  would  provoke  or 
annoy  Japan,  as  the  well-known  Yalu  River  Com- 
pany with  Monsieur  Bezobrazoff,  a  new  favourite  of 
Emperor  Nicholas's  at  that  time,  at  its  head,  was 
doing.  Count  Lamsdorff  concluded  this  memoran- 
dum by  stating  his  open  opposition  to  an  anti-Jap- 
anese policy,  with  almost  brutal  frankness  and 
threatening  to  resign  if  it  were  continued  any  fur- 
ther. Nicholas  II  refused  to  accept  his  resignation 
and  promised  amendment,  but  the  activities  of  the 
Yalu  River  Company  in  no  way  lessened,  and  the 
Russo-Japanese  War  was  the  result. 

At  first  sight  it  seems  strange  that  Count  Lams- 
dorff gave  proofs  of  such  real  statesmanship.  The 
key  to  the  puzzle  is  to  be  found  in  the  reports  which 
passed  between  Count  Lamsdorff  and  Count  Witte. 
The  latter,  whose  greatness  was  so  little  appreciated 
by  Nicholas  II,  was  the  originator  of  the  policy  of 
Lamsdorff,  by  whom  he  was  constantly  consulted. 
Lamsdorff  had  sufficient  acumen  to  make  himself 
Witte 's  mouthpiece  and  the  latter 's  fall  was  dis- 
astrous to  Lamsdorff 's  calculations.  The  Emperor 
knew  perfectly  well  of  the  two  men's  relations  and 
the  credit  with  which  the  Foreign  Minister  thought 
he  had  covered  himself  suffered  severely  in  conse- 
quence. Lamsdorff  fell  into  disgrace  and  died  soon 
after. 

The  Emperor's  choice  of  his  successor  fell  upon 
Monsieur  Iswolsky. 


THE  ARRIVISTES  169 

Iswolsky  had  been  Secretary  of  the  Consulate  at 
Philippopolis  in  Bulgaria;  Secretary  in  Koumania, 
Washington  and  Copenhagen ;  and  as  Official  Agent 
in  Rome  renewed  the  intimate  relations  between  Rus- 
sia and  the  Holy  See — which  had  been  severed  for 
many  years.  He  had  also  afterwards  been  our  first 
representative  at  the  Vatican,  and  then  was  Minister 
at  Belgrade,  Munich,  Tokyo  and  Copenhagen.  He 
had  graduated  from  the  Imperial  Alexandre  Lyceum, 
with  honours,  receiving  a  gold  medal — and  even  at 
that  time  his  comrades  prophesied  he  would  eventu- 
ally become  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  He  had 
always  dreamed  of  obtaining  the  post  of  Ambassador 
to  Berlin  and  intrigued  a  great  deal  to  secure  it,  but 
though  he  failed  in  this  he  achieved  the  higher  office 
as  had  been  prophesied. 

Incontestably  very  intelligent,  with  the  very  wide 
outlook  and  broad  point  of  view  of  the  real  states- 
man, he  had,  however,  two  great  faults :  a  limitless 
ambition  and  a  snobbishness  which  amounted  to  a 
disease.  In  order  to  further  his  ambitions  and  his 
career  he  would  hesitate  at  nothing. 

When  he  was  First  Secretary  in  Roumania  he 
fought  a  duel  with  a  Roumanian  Officer,  Lapteff  by 
name.  "A  diplomat  who  fights,  is  equal  to  a  soldier 
who  does  not,"  Prince  Gortchakoff  had  once  said. 
This  principle  was  always  one  of  the  rules  of  the 
Russian  Foreign  Office;  but  Iswolsky  cleverly  knew 
how  to  make  use  of  the  duel  to  further  his  interests. 


170     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  cause  of  the  duel  had  been  a  woman,  but  he  let 
it  be  understood  at  Petrograd  that,  in  reality,  he 
had  fought  to  defend  the  honour  of  his  Imperial 
Master  who — he  claimed — had  been  insulted  by  his 
adversary.  His  version  was  believed  and  he  was 
created  a  Gentleman  of  the  Chamber,  and,  as  he 
could  no  longer  remain  in  Bucharest  because  of  this 
contretemps,  he  was  transferred  to  Washington. 

Iswolsky  only  had  a  very  small  fortune  of  his  own 
and  he  spent  the  whole  of  it  in  the  United  States  in 
order  to  make  a  good  impression  in  Washington, 
Newport  and  Bar  Harbor  Society.  All  his  friends 
made  sure  that  he  would  marry  an  American  heiress, 
but  Iswolsky  preferred  to  be  transferred  to  Copen- 
hagen, Where  he  married  Countess  Toll,  daughter  of 
our  Minister  to  Denmark,  whose  parents  were  very 
high  in  favour  with  AJexander  III.  The  Emperor 
himself  was  one  of  the  bride's  witnesses  and  on  the 
day  of  his  wedding  Iswolsky  was  made  Chamberlain. 

For  the  honeymoon  he  chose  a  visit  to  Rome.  He 
well  knew  of  the  existing  state  of  affairs  between 
Russia  and  the  Pope,  and  hence  decided  to  make  a, 
trip  there  to  look  into  the  matter — in  a  purely  private 
and  speculative  way.  From  Rome  he  sent  a  long 
memorandum  to  the  Foreign  Office  which  was  very 
much  liked  and  he  was  appointed,  at  first,  semi-offi- 
cial Representative  of  Russia  at  the  Pope's  Court, 
and  soon  after,  Minister-Resident  to  the  Holy  See. 
This  was  really  the  beginning  of  his  fine  career. 


THE  ARRIVISTES  171 

His  snobbishness  at  least  equalled  his  ambitions. 
A  great  name  was  a  divine  endowment  in  his  eyes. 
Of  an  unpleasing  physical  appearance  he  neverthe- 
less thought  himself  irresistible  where  women  were 
concerned.  He  also  believed  that  after  Bismarck  he 
was  the  greatest  diplomat  in  the  world! 

After  having  been  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  he 
was  made  Ambassador  to  Paris  and  there  had  to 
receive  the  various  members  of  a  Republican  govern- 
ment, which,  to  him,  was  torture.  He  preferred  to 
associate  with  Dukes  and  Princes ;  but,  of  course,  his 
position  as  Ambassador  necessitated  his  throwing 
open  his  drawing  rooms  to  powerful  Republicans. 

Monsieur  Briand,  who  was  then  Minister  of  Jus- 
tice before  being  made  President  of  the  Council, 
knew  Iswolsky's  weakness  in  this  matter  very  well. 
For  that  reason  he  avoided  all  invitations  to  the  Rus- 
sian Embassy.  "When  he  became  President  of  the 
Council,  however,  he  could  no  longer  refuse  an  invi- 
tation which  was  personally  sent  to  him  on  one  occa- 
sion by  the  Russian  Ambassador.  He  went  and  was 
received  by  Madame  Iswolsky,  who  said  to  him: 
"Monsieur  Briand,  it  would  seem  that  you  have  no 
pleasure  in  coming  to  us."  Briand  answered,  "Oh, 
Madame,  surely  not  as  much  in  coming,  as  you  have 
in  asking  me." 

On  another  occasion  when  he  was  giving  a  fete 
to  which  all  classes  were  asked  and,  of  course,  all 
the  members  of  the  French  Government,  the  Russian 


172     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Ambassador  was  particular  that  the  Duke  of  Ven- 
dome,  a  member  of  the  Royal  Family  of  France, 
should  be  present.  This  was  not  easy  to  accomplish 
as  the  members  of  the  French  Royalty  studiously 
avoid  coming  into  any  contact  with  the  Republican 
government  representatives.  Iswolsky  therefore 
went  to  his  British  colleague,  Sir  F.  Bertie,  and  the 
following  conversation  took  place  between  the  two 
Diplomats : 

"I  want  very  much  to  have  the  Duke  of  Vendome 
present  at  my  reception,"  said  Iswolsky. 

"Well,   why  don't  you   ask   him?"   queried   Sir 
Francis  Bertie. 

"What  would  you  do  were  you  in  my  place?" 
Iswolsky  insisted. 

"I  wouldn't  ask  him  at  all,"  said  the  British  Am- 
bassador. 

"But  why  then  advise  me  to  do  so?" 
"Because  that  sort  of  thing  amuses  you,  whereas 
it  bores  me,"  replied  the  British  Ambassador. 

Many  other  anecdotes  of  a  similar  character 
floated  about  the  Paris  salons  and  were  most  annoy- 
ing to  our  Ambassador  as  they  made  him  appear 
ridiculous.  Iswolsky 's  snobbishness  was  very  ap- 
parent when  he  was  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  and, 
combined  with  his  colossal  self-assurance,  made  him 
follow  a  policy  very  dangerous  for  Russia.  The  an- 
nexation of  Bosnia-Herzegovina   (1908-09)   under- 


THE  ARRIVISTES  173 

mined  his  position  and  was  a  striking  example  of  his 
self-assurance. 

In  September,  1908,  Iswolsky  was  taking  a  holiday 
abroad  and  was  invited  by  Count  Berchtold — Am- 
bassador of  Austria-Hungary  at  Petrograd — to 
come  for  some  shooting  to  his  castle  at  Buchlau,  in 
Bohemia.  Iswolsky  accepted  the  invitation  and 
there  met  Count  Aerenthal,  Minister  of  Foreign  Af- 
fairs of  Austria-Hungary.  Count  Aerenthal  had  oc- 
cupied for  many  years  the  post  of  Ambassador  to 
Russia,  and,  very  naturally,  knew  intimately  our 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  Berchtold  did  things 
in  a  big  way.  Iswolsky  was  royally  received  at 
Buchlau.  Knowing  the  tastes  of  his  guest,  a  whole 
galaxy  of  lovely  women  were  present,  and  it  was 
there  that  was  discussed  the  question  of  the  annexa- 
tion of  Bosnia-Herzegovina,  which  was  to  begin  an 
era  of  complications  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula  which 
had  as  their  result  the  two  Balkan  Wars  and 
— indirectly — began  the  present  world  war. 

Iswolsky  stayed  at  Buchlau  from  the  19th  to  the 
22nd  of  September.  On  the  23rd  of  September,  the 
Minister  was  hunting  in  Austria  with  a  friend,  Prince 
Windichgraetz,  and,  on  the  25th,  he  arrived  at  Tor- 
gensee,  near  Munich,  where  he  owned  a  villa.  I  was 
at  Tergensee  at  this  time  as  I  too  owned  a  villa  there, 
not  far  from  his.  On  the  26th  of  September  Iswol- 
sky, chancing  to  meet  me  while  we  were  out  walking, 


174     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

begged  me  to  come  and  see  him,  saying:     "I  have 
a  very  serious  matter  to  discuss  with  you." 

At  that  time  I  was  correspondent  of  the  Novoie 
Vremya,  in  Paris  and  naturally  hastened  to  comply 
with  his  invitation. 

Iswolsky  made  me  his  confidant  on  several  matters 
of  high  importance,  of  which  I  took  copious  notes. 
He  told  me  that  Count  Aerenthal  had  approached 
him  with  regard  to  the  annexation  of  Bosnia-Herze- 
govina by  Austria-Hungary.     The  Austrian  Minister 
had  assured  him  that  he  personally  was   entirely 
against  the  annexation  which  might  entail  grave 
complications,  of  which  he  was  well  aware.    But,; 
he  added,  the  question  would  nevertheless,  in  all 
probability,  be  discussed  by  the  parliamentary  meet- 
ing of  delegates  at  Budapest  in  about  ten  days  or 
two  weeks'  time.     The  Austro-Hungarian  Minister 
did  not  hide  from  Iswolsky  that  the  delegates  "de- 
sirous of  spreading  sunshine  about  the  last  days  of 
the  old  Emperor — so  beloved  all  his  life,"  might 
very  well  vote  for  the  annexation  under  the  cir- 
cumstances.    Finally  Aerenthal  had  bluntly  asked 
Iswolsky  this  question:     "What  would  be  said  in 
Russia   should   the   annexation   become   a   fait  ac- 
compli?" 

Iswolsky  told  me  he  had  answered:  "It  would 
most  certainly  be  an  ugly  matter.  Naturally  we 
would  not  go  to  war  about  it,  but  would  demand 
adequate  compensations. ' ' 


THE  ARRIVISTES  175 

Our  Minister  then  enumerated  these  compensa- 
tions. They  would  include  the  declaration  of  the 
independence  of  Bulgaria;  territorial  concessions 
to  Montenegro;  an  outlet  for  Serbia  on  the  Adri- 
atic, and,  finally  a  settlement  of  the  questions  relative 
to  the  Bosphorus  and  Dardanelles,  in  a  way  that 
would  please  Russia.  Aerenthal  promised  his  sup- 
port and  once  more  emphasized  the  fact  that  he  was 
personally  against  the  annexation  and  that  he  would 
oppose  it  at  the  meeting  of  the  delegates.  Iswol- 
sky  then  carefully  explained  to  me  his  reasons  for 
his  answers  to  Aerenthal  and  told  me  that  we  were 
not  ready  to  open  the  Balkan  question  with  all  its 
ramifications,  as  great  danger  would  arise  were  we 
to  show  ourselves  unalterably  opposed  to  the  an- 
nexation. 

"To  protest  it  officially,"  he  said,  "we  should 
have  to  be  strong  enough  to  uphold  our  protest 
by  force,  if  necessary.  A  mere  protestation  might 
easily  become  a  severe  diplomatic  defeat  and  this  I 
wish  to  avoid." 

The  Minister  concluded  by  asking  me  to  send  a 
telegram  to  my  newspaper  "to  prepare  Russian 
opinion  for  the  eventuality  of  the  annexation  of 
Bosnia-Herzegovina. ' ' 

I  told  him  that  it  would  be  impossible  for  me  to 
do  this.  "If,"  said  I,  "I  should  send  my  informa- 
tion in  the  form  of  a  conversation  that  I  had  at 
Tergensee  with  a  Russian  statesman,  it  would  nat- 


176     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

urally  be  at  once  known  that  you  must  be  the  man 
and  so  this  would  not  accomplish  your  ends.  On 
the  other  hand,  were  I  to  publish  news  of  so  grave 
a  character  without  giving  my  source  of  information, 
my  editors  might  very  possibly  withhold  its  publi- 
cation." 

I  then  proposed  that  he  should  make  use  of  our 
official  telegraphic  bureau,  and  send  a  telegram 
containing  the  news  he  had  just  given  me.  He 
agreed  to  this  and  the  next  day  I  submitted  the  tele- 
gram that  I  had  drawn  up  over  night.  He  made  a 
few  changes  at  first,  but  afterwards  re-wrote  it  in 
his  own  hand.  This  message  I  personally  sent  to 
Berlin  to  my  successor  at  the  Russian  Embassy, 
Monsieur  Van  der  Vliet,  asking  him  at  the  same  time 
to  hand  it  to  Monsieur  Markoff,  the  representative 
of  our  official  telegraphs  in  Germany.  In  my  letter 
which  went  at  the  same  time  to  Van  der  Vliet,  I  con- 
fidentially told  him  the  source  of  this  very  grave 
information.  The  telegram  I  sent  was  published  in 
all  Russian  papers,  and  reproduced  in  all  the  well 
known  European  newspapers.  It  had  the  effect  of 
a  bomb,  and  unloosed  a  Russian  press  campaign  of 
the  most  violent  and  bitter  character. 

On  the  27th  of  September  I  had  another  long  in- 
terview with  Iswolsky.  I  asked  him  if  he  could 
answer  for  the  concurrence  of  the  European  Cab- 
inets in  the  matter  of  the  projected  compensations. 

Iswolsky  seemed  to  be  absolutely  sure  of  the  Cab- 


THE  ARRIVISTES  177 

inets  of  Rome,  Paris  and  London.  As  for  that  of 
Berlin,  he  thought  it  would  follow  the  diplomatic 
action  of  Austria-Hungary;  and  this  was  all  ar- 
ranged for  between  Aerenthal  and  himself. 

Naturally  he  had  communicated  with  Aerenthal 
with  regard  to  these  negotiations,  and  had  also  given 
his  own  ideas  to  Emperor  Nicholas.  He  proposed 
to  the  Emperor  that  he  (Iswolsky)  should  go  to 
Rome,  Paris,  London  and  Berlin  to  sound  political 
sentiment  in  these  capitals.  The  Czar  accepted  his 
proposal  and  on  the  29th  of  September  Iswolsky 
started  on  his  journey. 

The  King  and  Queen  of  Italy  and  their  suite,  being 
at  the  time  at  Raconidge,  a  castle  of  theirs  near  Tu- 
rin, Iswolsky  went  There  first.  He  was  accompanied 
by  Madame  Iswolsky.  The  King  and  Queen  greeted 
him  warmly.  He  was  given  the  Grand  Cordon  of  St. 
Maurice  and  Lazare,  and  Madame  Iswolsky  was  paid 
marked  attention  by  the  Queen.  Very  much  grati- 
fied with  his  pourparlers  with  the  Italian  statesmen 
Iswolsky  left  Italy  and  reached  Paris  the  first  of 
October,  1908. 

That  same  day  Monsieur  Pichon,  then  Minister 
of  Foreign  Affairs  in  Paris,  in  a  conversation  with 
Iswolsky  regarding  the  annexation  said  to  him  that 
according  to  reports  he  had  received  on  the  Balkan 
situation  from  the  French  represent  at  Lves  in  Sofia, 
the  annexation  was  already  an  accomplished  fact  in 
principle;   that   it   would   be   preceded   by   the   an- 


178     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

nouncement  of  Bulgarian  independence  and  that 
Prince  Ferdinand  would  assume  the  title  of  Czar. 

Iswolsky  would  not  believe  it,  although  he  too  had 
similar  reports  to  those  of  Monsieur  Pichon,  which 
had  been  sent  to  him  by  Monsieur  Sementovsky,  our 
Minister  at  Sofia. 

For  Iswolsky  to  admit  that  these  items  of  informa- 
tion were  correct,  was  to  admit  his  defeat  at  the 
hands  of  Aerenthal!  Iswolsky 's  colossal  self-es- 
teem, always  to  the  fore,  would  not  permit  any  such 
thing,  so  he  denied  the  truth  of  the  reports,  and  tried 
to  make  himself  believe  that  all  was  well.  But  he  de- 
nied things  that  were  self-evident  to  any  one. 

On  the  evening  of  October  1st  he  received  a  tele- 
gram from  Sementovsky  in  Sofia,  telling  him  that 
the  Proclamation  of  Bulgarian  Independence  would 
be  issued  the  next  day!  This  news  was  confirmed 
by  our  Ambassador  at  Vienna,  to  whom  Iswolsky 
frantically  telegraphed  and  the  Ambassador  added 
that  the  annexation  would  follow  the  proclamation, 
that  is  to  say,  within  a  very  few  days.  And  so  it 
happened.  On  October  2nd  Prince  Ferdinand  of 
Coburg  proclaimed  the  Independence  of  Bulgaria, 
and  assumed  the  title  of  Czar,  and  on  the  4th  Octo- 
ber the  annexation  of  Bosnia-Herzegovina  was  a 
fait  accompli! 

It  is  evident  that  Count  Aerenthal  completely  and 
successfully  duped  Iswolsky  at  the  Buchlau  meet- 
ing.    It  is  possible  that  the  treaty  between  the  Dual 


THE  ARRIVISTES  179 

Monarchy  and  Bulgaria  was  made  after  ^swolsky's 
visit  to  Count  Berchtold.  Naturally,  this  treaty  was 
projected  long  before  this,  but  Count  Aerenthal 
feared  a  rupture  with  Russia,  knowing  full  well  that 
Germany  might  possibly  not  uphold  her  ally,  Austria- 
Hungary,  as  she  was  not  at  all  ready  at  that  date  to 
begin  the  European  War  (October,  1908). 

But  Iswolsky,  having  imprudently  assured  Berlin 
that  Russia  would  not  make  war,  and  would  be  con- 
tent with  adequate  compensations,  Aerenthal  had 
absolutely  a  free  hand.  Furthermore,  as  Iswolsky 
had  told  him  the  compensations  Russia  would  expect, 
Aerenthal,  wishing  to  embroil  his  Russian  colleague 
as  deeply  as  possible  in  order  that  he  might  have 
the  least  possible  success,  won  a  signal  victory  by 
hurrying  on  the  Bulgarian  Proclamation  with  his 
Government's  concurrence,  and  made  it  appear  as 
if  Austria-Hungary  and  not  Russia  had  determined 
on  Bulgarian  independence  of  Turkey. 

Bulgaria  played  Austria-Hungary's  game  by  not 
referring  the  question  to  Russia  who  up  to  that 
time  had  stood  sponsor  for  Bulgaria  in  Europe.  As 
to  the  other  compensations  demanded  by  IswTolsky, 
Aerenthal,  once  the  annexation  was  accomplished, 
proposed  to  present  them  formally  to  the  other  For- 
eign Chancelleries,  and  this  he  did. 

Of  course  Iswolsky  was  undone,  and  in  a  terrible 
rage.  He  decided  nevertheless  to  continue  his 
pourparlers  in  Europe  on   the  matter  of  compensa- 


180     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

tions  as  he  thought  the  only  thing  left  for  him  to 
do  was  to  fight  matters   out  to  the  bitter  end. 

The  French  Cabinet  promised  him  its  fullest  sup- 
port, but  the  great  problem  was  to  win  over  the 
British  Cabinet  in  the  very  delicate  questions  of  the 
Bosphorus  and  Dardanelles,  and  the  Berlin  cabinet 
in  the  matter  of  Serbia  and  Montenegro,  whose  af- 
fairs were  intimately  connected  with  those  of  Ger- 
many's ally,  the  Dual  Monarchy. 

Iswolsky  therefore  hastened  to  London  to  begin 
operations.  He  was  received  in  the  British  capital 
with  great  cordiality,  but  when  he  touched  upon  the 
question  of  the  Dardanelles,  he  was  quickly  told  that 
this  matter  could  not  be  decided  hurriedly.  He  was 
assured,  however,  that  in  principle  the  British  Cab- 
inet had  nothing  against  passing  a  resolution  on  the 
Serbian  question  which  would  not  antagonize-  Ber- 
lin, though  it  would  first  be  necessary  to  find  out  the 
status  of  public  opinion  in  England.  It  seemed  evi- 
dent that  the  reply  of  the  British  Government  was  a 
refusal,  disguised  in  polite  terms. 

From  London  Iswolsky  intended  to  go  to  Berlin. 
He  sent  a  telegram  to  Count  Osten-Sacken  asking 
him  to  advise  with  the  German  Emperor  as  to  the 
possibility  of  his  ( Iswolsky 's)  seeing  him. 

I  have  referred  to  the  fact  that  William  did  not 
like  Iswolsky,  and  he  decided  that  now  was  the 
favourable  time  to  humiliate  the  Russian  statesman. 
He  knew  perfectly  well  that  Iswolsky  had  not  sue- 


THE  ARRIVISTES  181 

ceeded  in  London,  so  he  sent  word  to  Iswolsky  that 
he  was  very  busy  with  the  festivities  attendant  upon 
the  marriage  of  his  son,  August  Willielni,  and  asked 
him  if  he  would  come  to  Berlin  after  the  ceremonies 
were  over.  The  intention  of  the  German  Emperor 
to  wound  Iswolsky  was  evident,  for,  under  normal 
circumstances  he  would  of  course  have  invited  our 
Foreign  Minister  to  Berlin  and  the  festivities. 

Iswolsky  went  to  Baden-Baden,  and  conforming 
to  the  Emperor's  wishes,  returned  to  Berlin  a  week 
later. 

I  was  in  the  German  capital  at  this  time,  and  had 
been  able  to  satisfy  myself  completely  and  accurately 
as  to  the  sentiment  in  both  official  and  public  Ger- 
many. I  knew  perfectly  well  how  greatly  German 
political  circles  feared  a  war  then.  Aerenthal's 
startlingly  brusque  action  had  been  severely  con- 
demned by  all  parties,  and  relief  was  only  felt  when 
it  was  known  that  Russia,  too,  did  not  wish  for  war,  i\> 
and  that  she  would  not  provoke  one. 

It  was  only  then  that  the  German  Foreign  Office 
decided  to  press  Austria-Hungary  further  into  the 
matter,  and  at  the  same  time,  if  possible,  to  force 
a  diplomatic  defeat  on  Russia.  I  knew  Herr  Stein, 
Editor-in-Chief  of  the  Frankfurter  Zeitung,  inti- 
mately, who  was  persona  gratissima  with  Prince  von 
Buelow.  He  confided  to  me  that  the  Emperor  would 
avoid  discussing  politics  with  Iswolsky.  I  did  not 
hesitate  to  transmit  this  information  at  once  to  our 


182     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Foreign  Minister,  who  was  very  doubtful  if  it  were 
correct.  But  it  was  true,  for  on  the  very  day  of 
Iswolsky's  arrival  in  Berlin,  he  was  asked  to  a 
family  luncheon  at  the  palace.  The  Emperor 
broached  all  sorts  of  subjects,  with  the  exception  of 
the  political  situation  of  the  day. 

Prince  von  Buelow  later  gave  a  banquet  in  honour 
of  his  Russian  colleague,  but  he  too  avoided  delicate 
questions,  and  refused  to  allow  the  conversation  to 
impinge  on  political  questions  in  the  slightest  way. 
Among  those  present  at  this  dinner  were  the  high- 
est court  functionaries,  and  a  veritable  host  of 
beautiful  women.  It  was  only  at  the  last  moment 
on  the  day  of  Iswolsky's  departure  that  the  Ger- 
man Chancellor  came  to  see  him  to  discuss  politics. 
It  was  seven  o'clock  at  night,  and  Iswolsky's  train 
left  at  eleven.  To  his  great  disappointment,  this  in- 
terview did  not  at  all  satisfy  our  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs.  When  he  began  to  speak  of  "compensa- 
tions," Prince  von  Buelow  said  that  Germany  had 
nothing  to  do  with  the  question,  and  that  she  was 
not  interested,  advising  him  at  the  same  time  to 
take  up  the  matter  directly  with  the  cabinet  at 
Vienna. 

Our  Minister's  defeat  was  complete! 

On  his  return  to  Russia  he  fought  the  entire  press, 
which  had  started  a  very  vicious  campaign  against 
him.  On  the  other  hand  he  tried  to  continue  the 
struggle  against  Aerenthal.     Endless  negotiations 


THE  ARRIVISTES  183 

between  them  followed,  to  such  an  extent  that  Berlin 
decided  to  put  a  stop  to  them. 

In  the  early  part  of  March,  1909,  Count  Pourtales, 
the  German  Ambassador  at  Petrograd,  came  to  see 
Iswolsky,  and  handed  him  a  sort  of  ultimatum. 

German^had_had_enough !  Fearing  complications 
she  demanded  formally  that  the  annexation  of  Bos- 
nia-HerzeffivmcTbe  at  once  recognized  by  Russia 
ivithout  any  reservations  whatsoever. 

Iswolsky  had  to  consent,  and  his  discomfiture  was 
complete,  His  snobbishness  and  his  incredible  ego- 
ism had  ruined  him. 

Tn  the  salons  of  Petrograd  he  was  given  the  sou- 
briquet of  "The  Prince  of  the  Bosphorus."  In  his 
conceit  Iswolsky  could  not  see  that  he  was  being 
mocked,  accepting  the  nickname  with  pleased  smiles. 
The  Russian  press  continued  its  vitriolic  attacks  on 
him,  and  his  many  enemies  did  their  utmost  to  un- 
dermine his  position.  His  final  disgrace  was  first 
and  foremost  due  to  the  matter  of  the  Bosnia-Herze- 
govina annexation,  though  his  resignation  did  not, 
however,  take  place  until  a  year  later. 

It  would  be  unjust,  however,  to  judge  Iswolsky 
solely  by  the  bad  blunder  he  made  in  the  Balkan 
question.  Despite  his  faults  he  had  without  doubt 
the  stuff  in  him  of  which  statesmen  are  made.  Per- 
suaded as  he  was  that  our  relations  with  Germany 
had  undergone  a  serious  change,  he  tried  to  replace 
them  by  other  diplomatic  combinations. 


184     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

He  undertook  pourparlers  with  the  London  Cab- 
inet on  the  PersianQiiestion,  which  had  always  been 
the  (kirpf^ointlirour  relations  with  Great  Britain. 

In  1907  he  concluded  an  understanding  with  the 
London  Cabinet  which  had  as  its  object  the  delimita- 
tion of  the  zones  of  Russo-Anglo  influence  in  Persia, 
and  by  so  doing,  paved  the  way  for  an  eventual  com- 
plete rapprochement  with  England.  He  followed 
this  treaty  by  an  entente  with  Japan,  an  entente  the 
value  of  which  proved  itself  thoroughly  at  the  out- 
break of  the  present  world  war. 

Viscount  Motono  completed  this  understanding  by 
his  Treaty  of  1916 — which  was  published  in  January, 
1918,  by  the  Maximalists,  and  which  made  such  a  stir. 

The  foreign  policy  of  the  Russian  Empire  changed 
completely.  Our  relations  with  Germany  were  still 
correct,  but  the  secular  traditions  which  had  existed 
between  Petrograd  and  Berlin  disappeared  into  the 
vistas  of  the  past.  We  now  swam  openly  in  British 
waters.  The  Anglo-Franco-Eusso  Entente  took,  the 
place  of  the  old  Tri-Emperor  Alliance.  Iswolsky 
was  the  real  founder  of  Russia 'sjiew  policy,  which 
was  continued  by  his  successor,  Monsieur  Sazonoff. 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE    WHIRLPOOL 


SazonofTs   Policy:     Russian  Action  in  the  Balkans.     Bulgaria, 

Serbia   and  Roumania.     Foreign   Influence  on  Russian 

International  Policy 

Finding  himself  attacked  on  all  sides  by  the  press, 
and  by  his  enemies,  and  seeing  the  foundation  of  his 
power  crumbling  away  under  his  feet,  Iswolsky  ap- 
pointed Sazonoff  Vice-Foreign-Minister  in  the  hope 
that  he  would  secure  the  support  and  influence 
of  Stolypin.  But  his  hope  proved  vain.  A  few 
months  later  Iswolsky  was  made  Ambassador  to 
Paris,  and  Sazonoff Jiecam^-F-oreign  Minister. 

Monsieur  Sazonoff  thus  owed  his  career  partly  to 
Iswolsky,  whose  secretary  he  had  been  at  the  Holy 
See  in  Rome,  and  partly  to  the  fact  that  he  had 
married  the  sister  of  Mme.  Stolypin,  when  Stolypin 
was  President  of  the  Ministerial  Council  and  om- 
nipotent in  the  Empire. 

I  knew  Sazonoff  intimately.  He  had  been  my  col- 
league in  tfreForeign  Office  where  our  desks  were 
opposite  each  other.     We  had  both  been  appointed 

Imperial  Chamberlains  in  the  same  year,  and  made 

is:, 


186     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

our  debut  at  the  Court  at  the  same  time  in  March, 
1898,  at  Moscow  during  the  Imperial  Visit  to  the  old 
capital. 

The  new  minister  of  Foreign  Affairs — although 
not  nearly  so  intelligent,  as  his  predecessor — was 
by  no  means  stupid.  He  was  chiefly  handicapped  by 
lack  of  experience.  His  whole  experience  had  been 
"gained  in  London  and  at  the  Holy  See,  and  included 
only  one  appointment  as  a  Minister  of  Russia — that 
of  Resident  Minister  to  the  Papal  Court. 

As  Chief  of  the  Foreign  Office  at  first  he  was  mod- 
est, and  showed  himself  eager  to  learn,  allowing  him- 
self to  be  guided  by  his  brother-in-law  Stolypin.  But 
he  gradually  became  stubborn  and  insisted  on  dis- 
playing his  own  abilities,  especially  after  the  assas- 
sination of  Stolypin.  His  successes  in  the  Duma 
completely  spoiled  him.  The  Liberal  party  gave 
him  credit  for  being  progressive  and  when  the  war 
broke  out  the  deputies,  who,  with  but  few  exceptions, 
were  not  at  all  partial  to  our  existing  foreign  policies, 
credited  him  also  with  our  understanding  with  Great 
Britain,  and  with  Italy.  Each  time  that  SazonofT 
appeared  in  the  Duma  he  was  received  with  vocifer- 
ous  applause.  -  This  was  the  climax  which  completely 
turned  his  head.  He  believed  himself  to  be  another 
Talleyrand.  In  making  decisions  he  refused  to 
listen  to  any  advice  tendered  by  others,  seeming  to 
consider  he  was  above  criticism.     Zinovieff  the  elder, 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  187 

our  ex-Ambassador  to  Constantinople  and  a  diplo- 
mat well-known  in  all  European  Capitals  for  his  in- 
telligence, said  to  me : 

"I  never  see  Sazonoff  any  more.  He  does  not  talk 
over  affairs  these  days !      He.de£r.&es. ' ' 

But  notwithstanding  his  self-assurance,  Sazon- 
off was  quite  amenable  to  the  influence  of  the  For- 
eign Ambassadors  accredited  to  Petrograd. 

Before  the  Great  War,  Sazonoff  naturally  endeav- 
oured to  carry  on  Iswolsky's  policies,  especially 
where  England  was  concerned.  But  at  the  same 
time  he  was  carefully  watching  Berlin,  and  shortly 
before  the  war  he  concluded  with  the  Berlin  Cabinet 
an  entente  regarding  Persia,  which,  as  I  have  already 
explained,  was  in  my  opinion  very  humiliating  for 
Russia.  He  promised  to  link  Teheran  and  Bagdad 
by  rail  at  our  expense!  In  this  way  we  completely 
lost  our  influence  in  Persia.  In  the  south  our  under- 
standing with  England  gave  the  British  a  definite 
sphere  of  influence  in  the  empire  of  the  Shah,  and  in 
the  north,  where  England  had  given  us  a  similar 
sphere,  Sazonoff  by  this  railway  allowed  the  Ger- 
mans to  penetrate. 

But  his  lack  of  experience  and  his  unfortunate 
self-confidence  were  still  more  apparent  in  his  Balkan 
policy-. 

In  the  month  of  April,  1912,  Serbia  and  Bulgaria 
concluded  an  offensive  and  defensive  alliance.     This 


188     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

treaty  had  been  first  submitted,  and  received  Rus- 
sia's sanction.  It  was  obvious  that  this  alliance 
had  Turkey  in  view,  and  that  war  would  ensue. 

I  was  then  in  the  Balkans  as  special  correspondent 
of  my  paper  {The  Birjevia  Wiedemosti — the  larg- 
est daily  in  Petrograd)  and  had  stayed  for  several 
weeks  in  Belgrade.  From  my  conversations  with 
Prince  Alexander,  heir  to  the  Serbian  throne,  Mon- 
sieur Paschitch,  President  of  the  Siberian  Council, 
and  also  with  Monsieur  de  Hartwig,  our  Minister  in 
Serbia,  probably  the  best  informed  men  on  the  Bal- 
kan situation,  I  had  gained  the  firm  conviction  that 
Serbia  was  at  that  moment  ready  for  war,  that  this 
was  quite  understood  and  agreed  to  by  Montenegro, 
and  that  Sofia  was  to  give  the  signal  which  would 
precipitate  war.  Later  when  I  was  in  Bulgaria  my 
conviction  was  confirmed.  I  was  perfectly  certain 
war  would  break  out  very  shortly.  More  than  that, 
on  the  24th  of  July,  1912,  I  sent  a  telegram  to  my 
paper  in  which  I  predicted  that  hostilities  would  be- 
gin about  the  end  of  September.  This  telegram  was 
quoted  everywhere  at  the  time  and  subsequent  events 
proved  I  was  right.  On  the  2nd  of  October,  1912 
(modern  style)  the  first  shot  was  fired  by  Monte- 
negro. 

I  had  exceptional  means  of  information  because 
my  brother-in-law,  (Sementovsky),  had  been  Minis- 
ter of  Sofia  for  many  years.  He  and  his  wife  were 
very  popular  there,  enjoying  an  exceptional  position 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  189 

in  political  circles,  and  being  very  friendly  \vitli_Czar- 
Ferdinand.  I  also  had  met  the  Czar  of  Bulgaria  be- 
fore, and  when  1  arrived  in  Sofia  immediately  called 
formally  at  the  palace.  Two  hours  later  I  was  vis- 
ited by  Monsieur  Dobrovitch,  chief  of  the  Czar's 
private  information  bureau,  and  his  right  hand  man. 
Dobrovitch  welcomed  me  in  his  master's  name,  and 
added  that  Ferdinand  wanted  to  see  me,  and  would 
like  to  know  howT  long  I  intended  remaining  in  Sofia. 
Knowing  my  answer  would  be  reported  verbally  to 
the  Czar,  and  having  had  experience  of  his  little 
idiosyncrasies,  I  answered: 

"To  have  the  great  honour  of  being  received  by 
your  Sovereign  I  have  decided  to  stay  in  Sofia  weeks, 
months,  years,  and  to  die  here,  if  necessary." 

Shortly  afterwards,  Dobrovitch  visited  me  a  sec- 
ond time.  He  told  me  that  Ferdinand  would  receive 
me  on  the  following  day,  but  asked  that  our  conver- 
sation should  not  be  published  in  my  paper.  I  in- 
sisted, however,  and  Dobrovitch  sent  me  word  in 
the  evening  that  the  Czar  consented  to  the  publica- 
tion of  an  interview  on  the  condition  that  it  was 
first  submitted  to  him  as  censor. 

Ferdinand  received  me  privately  and  the  Queen 
was  the  only  one  present  at  our  interview,  which 
lasted  two  and  a  half  hours.  The  Czar  was  most 
agreeable,  and  recalled  many  circumstances  of  our 
previous  meetings,  spoke  with  seeming  affection  of 
Prince  LobanoJf^_nf_K[k^plas  II,  of  Count  Osten- 


190     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Sacken,  and  with  his  usual  enthusiasm  for  science, 
art  and  music — in  short,  he  touched  upon  all  possible 
subjects  of  conversation — with  the  exception  of  that 
which  interested  me  the  most,  the  political  situation 
of  the  moment.  It  was  only  when  I  rose  to  make 
my  adieu,  that  he  said  to  me : 

"You  have  just  come  from  Serbia, — what  are  your 
impressions?" 

I  answered  that  the  eyes  of  the  Serbians  were  fas- 
tened on  the  royal  palace  of  Sofia,  whence  the  word 
of  command  was  expected.  I  added  that  it  was 
sufficient  to  have  conversed  with  Prince  Alexander, 
with  Paschitch,  and  with  Hartwig  to  realize  opinion 
in  Belgrade.  At  Sofia,  I  continued,  it  was  not  so 
easy.  I  had  there  interviewed  a  dozen  statesmen 
all  of  whom  were  no  doubt  intelligent,  but  who  all 
seemed  to  hold  different  points  of  view. 

The  Czar  smiled,  and  turning  to  the  Queen,  said 
to  her: 

"You  hear  what  the  Baron  has  said  to  us,  Madame ! 
You  and  I,  too,  know  something  of  these  matters!" 
and  he  gesticulated  as  if  he  carried  a  heavy  weight 
on  his  shoulders. 

My  interview  with  Czar  Ferdinand  and  with  his 
ministers  confirmed  the  information  I  had  gathered 
in  Belgrade,  and  I  reported  accordingly  to  my  paper. 
When  the  report  was  published  M.  Sazonoff  was  vis- 
iting European  capitals.  He  was  absolutely  certain 
that  war  would  not  ensue  and  so  expressed  himself 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  191 

strongly  in  Paris  and  London.  In  speaking  of  the 
new  Balkan  Allies  he  said : 

"They  will  never  dare!" 

When  he  reached  Berlin  he  learned  that  war  had 
been  declared  and  said  to  his  intimates : 

"The  hounds  have  slipped  my  leash." 

On  his  return  to  Petrograd  I  met  him  at  the  rail- 
way station  of  Tsarkoe-Seloe,  the  residence  of  the 
Emperor,  where  we  were  both  staying.  Sazonoff 
asked  me  into  his  carriage  to  ride  with  him  to  Petro- 
grad. 

"Where  the  devil  did  you  get  your  information ?" 
he  asked  abruptly. 

My  answer  greatly  astonished  him. 

1 '  From  exactly  the  same  source  as  you  could  have 
had  it  just  as  easily.  More  especially  of  course, 
thanks  to  Hartwig.  You,  however,  did  not  agree 
with  Hartwig,  and  did  not  follow  his  line  of  reason- 
ing, preferring  to  listen  to  the  reports  of  Nikludoff, 
(who  had  succeeded  the  late  Sementovsky  as  the  Rus- 
sian Minister  at  Sofia).  Naturally  as  you  did  not 
want  war,  you  only  listened  to  those  who  were  of  the 
same  opinion  and  desires." 

It  must  be  admitted  that  on  the  outbreak  of  hos- 
tilities, Sazonoff  knew  how  to  get  out  and  keep  out 
of  trouble. 

Relying  on  our  understanding  with  France,  he  suc- 
ceeded in  forcing  Austria-Hungary  to  recognize  two 
principles : 


192     RECOLLECTIONS  OP  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  disinterestedness  of  the  great  European 
Powers  in  the  war,  and 

(2)  The  non-limitation  of  the  theatre  of  war  in 
the  Balkans. 

Austria-Hungary  evacuated  the  Sanjak  of  Novi- 
bazar,  a  Turkish  Province  she  had  militarily  occupied 
since  the  annexation  of  Bosnia  and  Herzegovina,  and 
thus  permitted  the  Serbs  to  join  with  the  Monte- 
negrins. 

It  is  certain  that  Germany,  and  especially  Austria- 
Hungary,  were  convinced  the  Slavic  Balkan  alliance 
would  be  crushed  by  Turkey,  but  when  the  victori- 
ous Serbs  reached  the  shores  of  the  Adriatic  Vienna 
received  a  severe  shock. 

Count  Berchtold,  at  that  time  Austro-Hungarian 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  promptly  proposed  a 
conference  of  the  Powers  to  discuss  Balkan  problems, 
and  Sazonoff  was  weak  enough  to  accept  this  pro- 
posal. The  conference  took  place,  and  resulted  in 
the  evacuation  by  the  Montenegrins  of  the  city  of 
Scutari  which  they  had  occupied  by  force  of  arms; 
the  creation  of  Albania  as  an  independent  state  but 
naturally  dependent  on  the  Central  Powers  with  a 
German  Prince,  (Prince  Wied),  as  Sovereign;  and  in 
the  retirement  from  Durazzo  on  the  Adriatic  of  the 
unfortunate  Serbs.  The  Serbians  retired — nay, 
were  forced  into  Macedonia.  Bulgaria  shrieked 
"Treachery,"  and  a  second  Balkan  war — this  time 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  193 

between  the  Allies  of  the  previous  day — broke  out  in 
1913. 

On  one  of  my  previous  visits  to  the  ex-Prime  Min- 
ister of  Russia,  Monsieur  Goremikine,  the  old  states- 
man strongly  criticized  Sazonoff's  policy.  He  said 
to  me: 

"Why  did  he  go  to  London  at  all?  Had  I  been 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  and  had  in  my  pocket 
the  treaty  with  Austria-Hungary  which  did  not  limit 
the  theatre  of  war,  and  had  been  asked  to  a  confer- 
ence, I  should  have  simply  replied :  '  Gentlemen,  let 
the  Slavs  and  the  Turks  cut  each  other's  throats  to 
their  hearts'  content!  and  when  they  have  had 
enough  of  this  and  they  make  a  treaty  of  peace,  there 
will  be  plenty  of  time  to  hand  their  treaty  round  the 
chancelleries  of  Europe.'  " 

Count  Witte  too  on  his  part  did  not  hesitate  to 
criticize  Sazonoff's  work  severely.  Unfortunately 
Goremikine,  through  indolence,  and  Witte,  through 
impotence,  did  not  bring  their  respective  points  of 
view  to  the  Czar's  attention.  Thus  Sazonoff  re- 
mained master  of  the  situation.  Afraid  of  a  second 
Balkan  War  and  very  desirous  of  preventing  it,  he 
persuaded  the  Emperor  to  intervene  personally. 
This  was  a  great  mistake.  The  telegram  of  the 
Russian  Emperor  to  the  Kings  of  Serbia  and  Bul- 
garia gave  no  practical  result,  and  Russian  prestige 
in  the  Balkans  was  seriously  damaged. 


194     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  second  Balkan  war  was  concluded  by  the 
treaty  of  Bucharest  in  1914.  This  treaty  pleased  no 
one  although  I  know  that  this  is  directly  contrary  to 
the  opinion  of  my  friend,  M.  Andre  Cheradame,  in 
his  remarkable  book  "The  Pan-German  Plot  Un- 
masked. "  Serbia  victorious  was  very  dissatisfied 
at  not  having  obtained  an  outlet  on  the  Adriatic, 
Greece  did  not  receive  all  she  hoped  for  in  Mace- 
donia. Roumania  was  not  content  with  what  she 
received  in  Dobrudja  and  felt  she  had  been  pre- 
vented by  Russia  from  marching  on  Sofia.  Bulgaria 
lost  all  round.  The  Bulgarians  were  furious  with 
Russia  because  they  believed  Russia  had  forced  Rou- 
mania to  intervene.  The  Treaty  of  Bucharest  was 
chiefly  the  work  of  Sazonoff.  It  was  obviously  an 
expedient  which  sowed  a  harvest  sure  to  be  ripe  for 
reaping  one  day.  Yet  when  the  harvest  came  in  the 
present  world  war,  as  far  as  the  Balkan  States  were 
concerned  Sazonoff  pursued  his  old  policies,  blind 
to  their  consequences. 

I  am  personally  convinced  that  Sazonoff  did  not 
believe  in  the  possibility  of  a  European  war  which 
would  develop  into  a  world-wide  war,  and  he  im- 
pressed this  belief  both  on  France  and  England. 
They  considered  their  interests  in  the  Balkans  small 
beside  those  of  Russia  and  naturally  preferred  to 
follow  the  lead  of  Sazonoff. 

On  the  first  of  June,  1914,  Emperor  Nicholas  had 
an  interview  with  King  Charles  I  of  Roumania,  at 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  195 

Constanza.  I  was  there  at  the  time,  and  learned 
through  Roumanian  statesmen,  and  intimate  friends 
of  mine,  that  King  Charles  had  made  certain  prom- 
ises to  Russia.  For  example  a  military  convention 
which  had  been  in  force  between  Austria-Hungary 
and  Roumania  for  more  than  twenty  years  would 
not  be  renewed.  Austria-Hungary,  in  consequence, 
lost  a  very  strong  support  in  the  Balkans.  Further- 
more, when  Archduke  Francis  Ferdinand,  heir  to 
the  throne  of  the  Habsburgs,  was  assassinated  at 
Serajevo,  on  the  28th  of  June,  1914,  Sazonoff,  doubt- 
less, knew  of  the  war-like  arrangements  the  Arch- 
duke had  concluded  in  his  Castle  at  Krobatin  with 
the  German  Emperor, — yet  as  far  as  I  could  judge 
from  my  conversation  with  members  of  his  entour- 
age, he  was  convinced  that  if  the  Archduke  were  out 
of  the  way,  the  peace  of  Europe  would  not  be  en- 
dangered. For  my  part  after  I  left  Constanza  I 
spent  ten  days  in  Bucharest,  and  then  went  to  Buda- 
pest and  Vienna.  At  both  places  I  had  interviews 
with  Austro-Hungarian  statesmen;  as  for  instance, 
Count  Tisza,  President  of  the  Hungarian  Council, 
and  Count  Forgach,  Vice-Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs 
in  Austria-Hungary.  Some  of  these  interviews  I 
sent  to  my  paper  in  Petrograd  and  in  them,  contrary 
to  the  opinion  held  by  Sazonoff,  I  held  strongly  to 
the  opinion  that  owing  to  the  death  of  the  Archduke 
the  situation  had  become  infinitely  more  serious. 
Count  Forgach, — who  had  been  a  colleague  of  mine 


196     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

at  Munich — was  most  explicit.  He  did  not  attempt 
to  hide  the  rage  he  was  in  against  the  Serbians.  He 
said  that  Serbia  fully  deserved  the  most  drastic  kind 
of  lesson,  and  added  that  Austria-Hungary  would 
know  how  to  inflict  it !  Coming  from  such  a  source 
this  was  enough.  Forgach  was  notorious  as  the 
forger  of  the  Friedjung  trial  and  one  who  would 
take  any  steps  to  harm  Serbia.  He  and  the  German 
Emperor's  representative,  Tchirsky,  were  hand  in 
glove. 

When  I  returned  to  Petrograd  on  the  2nd  of  July, 
1914,  I  reported  my  impressions  to  Monsieur  Nera- 
toff,  vice-Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  I  found  him 
very  sceptical  regarding  my  forebodings,  and  as  I 
knew  that  Neratpff  was_  Sazonoff  *s  alter  ego,  I  real- 
ized that  his  views  were  th6se~ot~'tlle  Foreign  Min- 
ister himself,  and  that  nothing  would  change  them. 

After  the  declaration  of  war  the  Duma  met  in 
solemn  conclave.  All  the  ministers  of  State,  and 
the  foreign  representatives  of  friendly  allied  Powers 
were  received  with  wild  enthusiasm.  Sazonoff  was 
unable  to  begin  his  speech  for  several  minutes  be- 
cause of  the  cheering  of  the  deputies,  and  he  thought 
the  cheering  was  intended  as  a  personal  tribute  and 
as  confirming  the  excellence  of  his  policies. 

It  is  apparent  by  simply  examining  a  map  which 
shows  clearly  the  southern  and  eastern  zones  of  the 
Great  War,  that  the  role  Serbia  would  play  in  any 
such  war  was  most  important.     Serbia  lay  as  a  bar- 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  197 

rier  between  Constantinople  and  the  Central  Powers, 
-anttlfer  army  of  about  400,000  men,  already  victori- 
ous in  the  two  Balkan  wars,  was  a  constant  menace  to 
Austria-Hungary.  It  should  have  been  evident  that 
the  efforts  of  our  diplomats  in  the  Balkan  Peninsula 
must  concentrate  themselves  on  endeavouring  to  help 
and  use_the  Serbian  forces  as  much  as  possible.  It 
was  therefore,  necessary  to, 

(1)  Force  Greece  to  action. 

(2)  Bring  Roumania  into  the  Alliance. 

(3)  Either  assure  ourselves  that  Bulgaria  would 
join  us,  or  that,  at  least,  she  would  remain  neutral, 
and 

(4)  To  unite  Italian  military  strategy  with  that 
of  Serbia. 

Unfortunately  Russian  diplomacy  lacked  initia- 
tive, and  drew  the  Allies  into  the  same  mischiev- 
ous situation.  Dynastic  considerations  were  allowed 
to  affect  diplomatic  and  military  action,  and  this 
unhealthy  state  of  affairs  was  ultimately  the  cause 
of  the  Serbian  disaster. 

Greece  in  1913  had  concluded  an  offensive  and  de- 
fensive alliance  with  Serbia,  which  was  primarily 
aimed  at  Bulgaria,  but  also  had  as  an  objective  the 
possibility  of  an  European  war.  It  was  stipulated 
in  this  treaty  that  if  Serbia  were  attacked  Greece 
would  come  to  her  assistance  with  all  her  military 
and  naval  forces. 

King  Constantine  of  Greece,  who  married  a  sister 


198     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

of  the  German  Emperor,  and  who  received  his  mili- 
tary education  in  Berlin,  regarded  his  rank  of  Gen- 
eral in  the  Prussian  Army  nearly,  if  not  quite,  as 
reverently  as  he  did  his  position  as  King  of  Greece. 
He  was  pro-German-to  iris  very  marrow.  He  was 
whole  heartedly  against  an  alliance  of  Greece  with 
any  powers  inimical  to  Germany  and  German  inter- 
ests. Venizelos,  the  only  great  statesman  and  dip- 
lomat in  Greece,  to  whom  Greece  owed  the  re-acquisi- 
tion of  her  former  territory,  and  who  was  the  author 
of  the  treaty  with  Serbia,  had  to  resign.  He  was  re- 
placed by  creatures  nominated  by  the  King,  who 
falsely  interpreted  the  treaty  with  Serbia,  and  con- 
fined Greece  to  a  condition  of  neutrality  entirely  pro- 
German  in  its  sentiments. 

All  diplomatic  action  of  the  Allies  should  have 
concentrated  in  an  attempt  to  force  an  anti-Con- 
stantine  movement — or  uprising — in  Athens.  In 
Paris  the  true  situation  was  realized.  But  as  much 
cannot  be  said  for  the  authorities  either  in  London 
or  in  Petrograd.  The  King  of  Greece  sent  one  of 
his  brothers  to  England  and  another  to  Russia  to 
plead  his  cause.  Prince  Christopher  worked  in  Lon- 
don, and  Prince  Nicholas — married  to  a  Grand  Duch- 
ess of  Russia, — did  his  best  in  Petrograd.  They 
both  used  every  possible  argument  regarding  their 
dynastic  interests,  and  both  Sir  Edward  Grey  and 
SazonofT  seem  to  have  been  blind  to  the  real  situa- 
tion. 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  199 

The  islands  of  the  Grecian  Archipelago  served 
regularly  as  bases  for  the  revictualling  and  remu- 
nitioning  of  German  submarines. 

A  certain  Baron  Schenk,  the  German  representa- 
tive in  Athens,  became  the  centre  of  a  web  of  spies 


spread  over  the  whole  Balkan  Peninsula.  VenTzelos, 
whose  life  was  in  danger,  had  to  leave  Athens,  and  it 
was  only  after  the  massacre  of  French  officers  and 
sailors  at  Athens  which  was  inspired  and  abetted  by 
the  Royal  Court  itself,  that  Allied  diplomacy  began 
to  show  some  signs  of  energy . 

King  Constantine  eventually  was  forced  to  leave 
the  country,  and  his  son  Alexander  was  proclaimed 
King.  Venizelos  became  Prime  Minister  again,  and 
Greece — at  last — made  common  cause  with  the  Al- 
lies. 

But  it  was  too  late !     Serbia  no  longpr  existed ! 

The  treaty  which  linked  Serbia  with  Roumania, 
made  in  1913,  had  expired  automatically  after  the 
peace  of  Bucharest.  But  it  was  evident  that  Rou- 
manian interests  lay  more  with  the  Allies  than  with 
the  Central  Powers.  Among  the  Provinces  of  Hun- 
gary was  Transylvania,  inhabited  by  five  or  six  mil- 
lion Roumanians,  and  naturally  Roumania — follow- 
ing a  thoroughly  nationalistic  policy — would  keep 
the  annexation  of  Transylvania  ever  in  view.  But 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war  the  throne  of  Roumania 
was  still  occupied  by  King  Charles  I,  by  birth  and 
in  his  whole  soul  a  Hohenzollern,  who  had  linked  the 


200     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

destinies  of  his  country  with  those  of  the  Central 
Powers.  Despite  this  fact,  through  the  pressure 
brought  to  bear  on  him  by  the  majority  of  his  peo- 
ple,— he  had  to  denounce  the  military  convention 
which  he  had  concluded  with  Austria-Hungary  in 
1884.  When  the  war  broke  out  he  held  a  Crown 
Council  (August  2nd,  1914)  and  began  by  declaring 
that  according  to  his  convictions,  Roumania  should 
become  an  ally  of  the  Central  Powers.  But,  as  he 
said,  in  case  the  majority  of  the  Council  should  not  be 
in  accord  with  such  a  policy,  he  was  ready  to  follow  a 
policy  of  the  strictest  neutrality.  He  added  that 
this  was  his  final  concession,  and  that  he  would  rather 
abdicate  than  act  in  any  way  against  the  Central 
Powers. 

The  meeting  was  a  very  turbulent  one.  The  King 
found  some  support  in  Monsieur  Carp,  the  ex-Presi- 
dent of  the  Council,  and  a  strong  partisan  of  Ger- 
many, and  also  in  the  person  of  Monsieur  Marghilo- 
man — also  an  ex-President  of  the  Council  who  voted 
for  neutrality. 

The  true  patriots,  such  men  as  the  late  N.  Philip- 
pesco  and  M.  Take  Ionescu,  demanded  immediate 
action  on  the  part  of  Eoumania  with  the  Allied 
Powers.  Monsieur  Bratiano,  the  leader  of  the  Lib- 
eral Party,  and  the  most  powerful  man  in  the  coun- 
try, who  was  President  of  the  Council,  played  a  dou- 
ble game.  He  declared  for  neutrality  as  he  did  not 
wish  to  break  with  the  King,  but  in  a  devious  man- 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  201 

ner  he  let  it  be  known  to  the  partisans  of  the  Allies 
that  he  was  completely  at  one  with  their  aspirations, 
and  only  awaited  a  favourable  opportunity  to  force 
the  King's  hand  and  to  follow  a  national  policy. 
Thus  at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  Roumania  pre- 
served her  neutrality. 

But  this  neutralitv  was  of  a  rather  curious  char- 
acter!  The  Roumanian  Government  did  not  oppose 
the  re-victualling  and  munitioning  of  Serbia  by  Rus- 
sia. We  had  installed  at  Reni,  on  the  Danube  and  on 
the  Roumanian  frontier  a  special  Military  Commis- 
sion, presided  over  by  Admiral  Vesselkine.  The 
ships  belonging  to  this  Commission  brought  the  mu- 
nitions, equipment,  and  supplies  down  the  Danube 
to  the  Serbians  under  the  very  eyes  of  the  Roumanian 
authorities,  but  the  latter  deliberately  turned  their 
eyes  another  way!  At  the  same  time  the  Central 
Powers  were  unostentatiously  passing  whole  batter- 
ies of  guns  of  heavy  calibre,  shells  and  cartridges  by 
the  million,  aeroplanes  in  sections,  rifles  by  the  thou- 
sand, through  Roumania,  all  destined  for  Bulgaria 
and  Turkey! 

German  and  Austrian  officers  were  at  complete  lib- 
erty to  come  and  go  at  will  from  Berlin  and  Vienna 
to  Sofia  and  Constantinople.  Furthermore,  Rou- 
mania re-fitted  and  re-victualled  the  Central  Powers 
witli  wheat  and  other  cereals,  and  to  cap  all,  finally 
concluded  a  commercial  treaty  with  them.  By  this 
treaty  Roumania  promised  to  supply  Austria-Hun- 


202     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

gary  and  Germany  with  a  certain  quantity  of  wheat, 
other  cereals,  and  petrol,  in  exchange  for  war  mate- 
rials wherewith  to  make  war.  This  was  ' '  strict  neu- 
trality" with  a  vengeance! 

Russia  several  times  tried  to  protest  against  the 
actions  of  Roumania  in  this  matter,  but  each  time 
Bratiano  excused  himself  and  assured  the  cabinet  at 
Petrograd  that  he  could  not  do  otherwise.    He  sol- 
emnly stated  he  Only  awaited  the  opportunity  to  join 
the  Allies  openly,  adding  that  Roumania  was  not  yet 
ready  from  a  military  point  of  view.     The  greater 
number  of  Roumania 's  heavy  guns  were  made  by 
Krupp,  and  the  rifles  by  Mauser,  and  the  Mannlicher 
Company — both  being  German  and  Austrian  firms. 
It  was  therefore  necessary,  he  said,  to  go  to  Germany 
and  Austria  for  munitions  for  these  weapons;  and 
it  stood  to  reason  that  the  Central  Powers  would 
not  provide  him  with  such  munitions  unless  he  turned 
over  food  stuffs  to  them !    As  to  the  question  of  per- 
mitting the  carriage  through  Roumania  of  war  ma- 
terials for  Bulgaria  and  Turkey,  and  allowing  Aus- 
trian and  German  officers  to  go  and  come  as  they 
pleased,     Bratiano    denied    the    facts    absolutely. 
He  explained  such  reports  by  saying  that  they  were 
circulated  by  his  enemies !     When  hard  pressed  for 
the  truth  by  the  diplomatic  insistence  of  the  Allies, 
and  afraid  to  declare  himself  one  way  or  the  other 
as  to  the  date  when  Roumania  might  be  expected  by 
them  to  join  their  forces,  Bratiano  let  it  be  under- 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  203 

stood  that  he  would  join  the  Allies  as  soon  as  Italy 
joined  them. 

In  order  to  lend  colour  to  this  assertion  he 
sent  a  personal  friend  of  his,  the  brother  of 
the  Roumanian  Minister  at  Petrograd,  M.  Dia- 
mandi,  to  Rome.  When  Italy  finally  did  join 
in  the  campaign,  Roumania,  instead  of  doing  as 
she  had  said,  still  maintained  her  neutrality!  Bra- 
tiano  explained  this  to  the  Allies  by  calling  attention 
to  the  Italian  refusal  to  link  their  forces  and  align 
their  strategy  with  Roumania.  It  must  be  admitted 
that  this  explanation  was  well  founded.  Italy  con- 
centrated all  her  efforts  on  the  Trentino,  and  Trieste 
as  her  main  objective,  and  would  not  extend  her 
operations  any  further. 

I  was  again  in  Bucharest  in  July,  1916,  and  stayed 
a  week  then  at  Reni  with  Admiral  Vesselkine,  the 
head  of  our  Military  Commission,  from  whom  I 
wished  to  obtain  information  as  to  Roumanian  af- 
fairs for  the  reason  that  he  knew  them  intimately. 
This  time  I  stayed  in  Roumania  fully  four  months 
and  I  was  present  when  she  at  last  took  the  field. 

At  that  time  the  Serbian  disaster  was  un  fait  ac- 
compli! The  heroic  Serbian  people  had  succumbed 
at  last — thanks  to  the  neutrality  of  Roumania  and 
Greece  and  the  bad  judgment  of  the  Allies.  The 
Allied  Forces — under  command  of  the  French  Gen- 
eral, Sarrail,  concentrated  at  Salonika,  were  grow- 
ing day  by  day,  and — with  the  Serbians — attained 


204     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  not  inconsiderable  number  of  slightly  more  than 
300,000  men.  Venizelos  had  instituted  at  Salonika 
a  separate  government  from  that  at  Athens,  and  did 
his  best  from  that  place  to  bring  Greece  into  the  war 
on  the  side  of  the  Allies. 

The  Roumanian  Court  was  now  divided  into  two 
camps.  King  Charles  had  died  of  a  broken  heart 
at  not  being  able  to  join  the  Central  Powers.  King 
Ferdinand  was  a  constitutional  king,  and  proved  him- 
self such,  saying  that  if  the  majority  of  his  people 
demanded  an  alliance  against  the  Central  Powers 
he  would  not  hesitate  to  sign  it  immediately. 

As  the  Government  was  in  the  hands  of  Bratiano, 
controlling  an  absolute  majority  in  the  House,  the 
King  trusted  himself  absolutely  to  him,  and  conse- 
quently Bratiano  was  complete  master  of  the  situa- 
tion. 

The  Allied  cause,  however,  found  strong  support 
at  Court  in  the  person  of  Queen  Marie.  Through 
her  father,  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh,  and  later  of  Co- 
burg,  she  is  British,  and  a  grand-daughter  of  Queen 
Victoria.  Her  mother  was  the  Grand  Duchess  Marie 
of  Russia,  the  only  daughter  of  Alexander  II.* 

Queen  Marie  did  not  attempt  to  hide  her  sympathy 
for  the  Allies,  and  as  she  was  extremely  popular  in 
Roumania  her  influence  was  invaluable  to  their 
cause.  The  Allies  also  had  several  strong  sup- 
porters among  the  Conservatives.     Carp  had  aban- 

*  See  Appendix  I. 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  205 

doned  politics  after  the  death  of  Charles  I,  and  the 
Conservative  Party  of  which  he  had  been  leader, 
had  split.  Marghiloman,  preaching  neutrality,  was 
at  one  end  of  the  rope,  and  Take  Ionescu  and  Philip- 
pesco,  partisans  of  the  Allies,  were  at  the  other  end. 
There  was  a  regular  tug-of-war  going  on  between  the 
two  factions. 

I  succeeded,  while  in  Bucharest,  in  keeping  on  the 
best  of  terms  with  all  the  parties,  and  for  a  time  my 
wife  and  I  were  the  guests  of  Philippesco  at  his 
charming  villa.  I  was  also  very  intimate  with  Take 
Ionescu,  and  lunched  several  times  a  week  with  Marg- 
hiloman. 

One  day  the  last  named  stated  his  convictions  to 
me  plainly.     He  said : 

"The  impossible  must  never  be  attempted.  My 
political  adversaries  want  to  swallow  Transylvania, 
and  even  the  Banat!  Our  stomachs  cannot  digest 
all  this.  In  annexing  Transylvania,  which  is  cul- 
turally far  more  advanced  than  we  are,  we  should  in 
time  become  Transylvanians,  and  no  longer  be  Rou- 
manians. Besides  we  are  not  ready  for  military 
action,  and  our  defeat — from  my  point  of  view — 
would  be  a  foregone  conclusion.  We  cannot  give  any 
serious  military  support  to  the  Allies,  and  I  am  con- 
vinced that  our  neutrality  will  be  more  profitable  to 
them  in  the  long  run,  than  if  we  took  the  field  ac- 
tively. ' ' 

It  is  necessary  to  state  that  since  I  had  first  known 


206     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

him  some  years  before,  Marghiloman  had  lost  a  great 
deal  of  his  prestige,  even  in  the  inner-circles  of  his 
own  party,  the  leadership  of  which  had  passed  into 
the  hand  of  his  adversaries.  But  the  Conservative 
Party,  as  a  whole,  only  exercised  a  small  influence  in 
the  House,  which  was  dominated  by  the  Liberals. 
The  latter  consisted  of  bankers,  rich  men  of  the 
Bourgeoisie,  and  of  various  other  individuals  who 
hoped  for  a  public  career  by  strictly  carrying  out  the 
orders  of  Bratiano. 

The  latter  was  cunning,  and  had  cleverly  known 
how  to  make  game — and  profitable  game  of  the  Al- 
lies' Representatives  at  Bucharest,  and  to  use  them 
for  his  own  ends!  Unfortunately  he  did  not  have 
a  very  difficult  game  to  play ! 

The  Russian  Minister, — Monsieur  Poklewsky- 
Kosiell, — was  by  no  means  unintelligent,  but  having 
fallen  out  with  the  first  Secretary  of  our  Legation, 
Monsieur  Arseniefr",  who  had  strong  friends  at  court 
in  Petrograd,  he  narrowly  missed  being  recalled, 
and  kept  his  position  solely  by  the  powerful  and 
friendly  support  of  SazonofT.  He  very  naturally 
wished  to  reinstate  himself  in  the  good  graces  of  our 
Foreign  Office,  and  saw  but  one  way  in  which  he 
could  do  so,  namely  by  forcing  Roumania  into  the 
war.  How  he  was  to  achieve  this  mattered  not  one 
whit  to  him!  Knowing  that  everything  depended 
on  Bratiano,  he  became  a  very  docile  instrument  in 
the  Roumanian  Minister 's  hands.     Moreover  he  had 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  207 

embroiled  himself  with  Admiral  Vesselkine,  and 
when  the  latter  called  the  attention  of  the  Russian 
Government  to  the  serious  infractions  of  the  neu- 
trality of  Roumania  for  the  benefit  and  profit  of  the 
Central  Powers,  Poklewsky,  under  Bratiano's  influ- 
ence, sent  home  reports  which  were  entirely  con- 
tradictory to  those  of  the  Admiral. 

The  French  Minister,  Monsieur  Blondel,  was 
somewhat  in  the  same  position  as  his  Russian  col- 
league. He  had  been  in  Roumania  for  eleven  years, 
and  his  daughter  had  married  the  Governor  of  Silis- 
tria.  In  Paris  Blondel  was  thought  to  be  too  Rou- 
manian in  his  tendencies  and  his  recall  was  decided 
upon,  but  he  was  eager  to  keep  his  post  and,  as 
his  only  method  of  doing  so,  stuck  tightly  to  Bra- 
tiano ! 

The  British  Minister,  Sir  H.  Barclay,  naturally 
followed  the  lead  of  his  French  colleague.  Under 
the  circumstances  this  was  of  no  great  moment  as 
he  had  not  very  much  influence  in  Roumania  owing 
to  the  pre-war  policy  of  England,  which  did  not  like 
to  mix  too  deeply  in  Balkan  affairs.  Barclay  was 
also  a  very  good  friend  of  Poklewsky,  who  had  been 
his  colleague  in  Persia. 

Thus  the  principal  representatives  of  the  Allies 
were  very  much  under  the  sway  of  Bratiano.  So 
much  so  that  when  one  day  after  a  luncheon  at  Mon- 
sieur Poklewsky 's,  I  criticized  Bratiano's  policy, 
Poklewsky  and  the  other  two  attacked  me  as  though  I 


208     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

were  a  personal  enemy  of  theirs,  while  Barclay 
marched  up  and  down  the  room,  his  hands  above  his 
head,  wildly  protesting  against  the  noise  we  made. 

Thus  Bratiano  was  really  dictator  of  Roumania. 
Vain,  and  very  ambitious,  he  was  eager  to  eclipse  his 
father,  who  had  been  the  liberator  of  Roumania,  and 
whose  colossal  statue  stands  in  the  public  square  at 
Bucharest.  All  the  Roumanian  ministers  were  his 
most  intimate  friends.  He  had  made  his  brother 
Minister  of  War,  and  at  the  head  of  the  General 
Staff  he  had  put  his  cousin,  General  Iliesco,  a  mili- 
tary nonentity. 

Bratiano  did  not  really  know  the  exact  fighting 
strength  of  Roumania.  He  knew  that,  in  case  of 
war,  Roumania  should  be  able  to  put  500,000  men  in 
the  field,  but  he  forgot  that  the  Army  only  had  muni- 
tions for  two  months, — that  it  entirely  lacked  any 
heavy  artillery  and  had  no  aeroplanes  at  all 

Bratiano  had  but  one  aim :  which  was  to  force  the 
Allies  to  pay  as  high  a  price  as  possible  for  Rou- 
manian assistance.  He  had  assured  himself  of  ter- 
ritorial aggrandizement  by  making  an  agreement 
which  gave  Roumania  Transylvania,  the  Banat  and 
a  portion  of  the  Bulgarian  Dobrudja,  but  he  had  not 
sufficiently  assured  himself  of  armed  assistance 
on  the  part  of  the  Allies.  When,  a  few  months  be- 
fore Roumania  declared  war,  Philippesco,  who,  as 
Minister  of  War,  knew  the  very  bad  condition  his 
country  was  in,  came  to  Petrograd,  he  insisted  that 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  209 

Russia  should  support  Roumania  with  an  army  of 
at  least  250,000  men.  In  his  overweening  self-assur- 
ance Bratiano  consented  to  accept  the  help  of  three 
Russian  divisions  only,  in  the  Dobrudja  region! 
Furthermore  he  would  listen  to  no  suggestions  from 
the  Allies  as  to  the  military  strategy  of  Roumania. 
He  proposed  to  leave  a  small  force  in  Dobrudja  and 
on  the  Danube,  which  he  thought  would  be  quite  suf- 
ficient to  hold  Bulgaria  in  check,  and  to  throw  the 
weight  of  the  Roumanian  army  over  and  beyond  the 
Carpathians,  to  invade  Transylvania.  He  also  hoped 
to  ensure  the  neutrality  of  Bulgaria  by  means 
of  small  concessions.  In  an  under-handed  way  he 
worked  hard  for  this  project,  and  he  was — most  un- 
fortunately— well  seconded  by  the  diplomatic  actions 
of  the  Allies!  Of  course  the  Bulgars  encouraged 
him  in  this  belief,  setting  a  trap  by  which  they  could 
force  him  to  pay  very  dearly  for  his  grave  and  ego- 
tistical errors. 

To  me,  who  had  studied  the  situation  very  carefully 
at  first  hand,  the  danger  of  a  plan  of  campaign  like 
this  was  vividly  clear!  I  had  sent  my  newspaper 
secret  reports  as  to  the  real  position  of  affairs,  not 
for  publication,  but  in  order  that  it  might  be  in  a 
position  to  understand  matters  in  view  of  eventuali- 
ties which  to  my  mind  were  certain  to  follow.  One 
copy  of  my  report  I  also  sent,  through  Admiral  Ves- 
selkine,  to  General  Brusiloff,  who  was  at  that  time 
in  command  of  the  Russian  Armies  in  the  South,  and 


210     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

another  copy  went  to  the  Emperor's  headquarters.* 
In  this  report  I  asserted  that  within  two  months,  or 
less,  Eoumania  would  be  short  of  food  supplies,  and 
more  important  still  would  have  no  ammunition 
whatsoever!  Thus  I  pointed  out  she  would  be  a 
heavy  burden  on  our  shoulders  as  the  other  Allies 
could  get  nothing  in  the  way  of  supplies  of  any 
kind  to  her.  I  also  stated  it  would  be  very  diffi- 
cult for  Eussia  to  do  much,  as  we  only  had  one 
available  port,  Archangel,  which  was  far  to  the 
north,  for  receiving  our  own  war  munitions,  and 
also  that  our  railway  facilities  were  so  poor  that 
they  barely  sufficed  for  our  own  purposes — to  say 
nothing  of  outfitting  and  sustaining  another  coun- 
try. It  was  primarily  necessary,  therefore,  that 
Eoumania  should  open  a  way  for  herself  through 
to  Saloniki  in  order  to  get  into  direct  communica- 
tion with  the  Allies  and  their  supplies,  and  that  the 
weight  of  the  Eoumanian  forces,  reinforced  by  a 
Eussian  army  of  considerable  strength,  should  act  in 
conjunction  with  General  Sarrail's  forces,  and  be 
thrown  at  once  across  the  Danube  and  hurled  against 
Bulgaria  and  Turkey. 

In  the  north  all  that  Eoumania  had  to  do  to  safe- 
guard herself  against  an  Austro-Hungarian  attack, 
was  to  use  the  Carpathian  range,  that  could  easily  be 
defended  and  by  a  comparatively  small  army. 

I  did  not  hesitate  to  assert  the  same  things  in 

*  See  Appendix.  II. 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  211 

Bucharest,  but  when  Poklewsky  learned  what  I  was 
doing  he  made  a  tremendous  uproar  about  it!  In 
the  presence  of  Take  Ionescu's  brother  he  accused 
me  of  "mixing  the  cards."  The  Russian  Military 
Attache,  Colonel  Tatarinoff,  took  sides  and  agreed 
with  Poklewsky  against  me.  The  Colonel's  reports 
were  the  antithesis  of  mine,  and  naturally  their  effect 
was  to  neutralize  my  opinion,  while  they  did  not 
in  the  least  advance  his  theories.  Events  which 
soon  followed  proved  me  to  be  in  the  right.  While 
the  Roumanian  army  was  descending  the  Carpa- 
thians and  invading  Transylvania  without  meeting 
with  any  serious  resistance,  the  Bulgars,  with  Ger- 
man and  Turkish  assistance,  attacked  the  Rou- 
manians on  the  Danube,  and  the  weak  Russo-Rou- 
manian  forces  in  Dobrudja.  Two  of  the  finest  and 
best  equipped  Roumanian  Divisions  were  practically 
annihilated  at  Tourtoukai  (on  the  Danube),  and 
the  little  Russo-Roumanian  Army  had  to  hastily  re- 
cross  the  Danube  in  full  retreat. 

Two  days  before  the  disaster  of  Tourtoukai,  the 
General  commanding  the  Roumanian  Southern  Army 
was  quietly  playing  cards  in  the  club  at  Bucharest. 
He  was  sure  the  Bulgars  would  not  attack,  and  in 
this  idiotic  supposition  he  was  sustained  by  Bratiano ! 

In  the  north  the  Prussian  General,  von  Fa-lken- 
hayn,  having  been  made  Commander-in-Chief, 
gathered  an  Austro-German  army  together  and  com- 
pletely routed  the  Roumanian  forces.     The  latter 


212     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

fled  in  disorder  and  abandoned  in  their  panic  all  the 
strongest  passes  of  the  Carpathian  Range.  The  Aus- 
tro-Germans  penetrated  Roumania  from  the  north, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  Turks  and  Bulgars  attacked 
from  the  south. 

And  the  Roumanian  tragedy  had  begun ! 

Obviously,  poor  Roumania  owed  her  evil  fortunes 
and  tremendous  sufferings  principally  to  Bratiano, 
but  proper  diplomacy  on  the  part  of  the  Allies  and 
their  military  advisers,  could  have  done  much  to  al- 
leviate the  situation  had  they  forced  Bratiano  either 
to  declare  war  before  Serbia  had  been  completely 
crushed  or  to  adopt  a  plan  of  campaign  which  con- 
formed to  the  military  situation  of  the  moment. 

Of  the  Allies,  Russia  must  bear  the  chief  blame 
for  the  terrible  Roumanian  disaster.  The  General 
Staff  should  have  sent  Roumania  an  army  of  at  least 
250,000  men,  which  Philippesco  had  asked  for.  The 
General  Staff  had  no  possible  excuse  for  not  doing 
so,  as  soon  after,  at  a  far  less  favourable  time,  it  was 
able  to  concentrate  on  the  Roumanian  frontiers  a 
force  of  500,000  men.  But  the  General  Staff  like  all 
the  rest  listened  to  Bratiano  and  sent  only  the  three 
divisions  he  asked  for. 

Sazonoff,  surely,  should  have  made  it  his  policy 
to  bring  pressure  to  bear  on  Bratiano,  and  persuade 
him  to  follow  a  plan  which  would  not  only  conform 
with  ours,  but  with  that  of  the  Serbians.  He  was 
always  afraid  Bratiano  might  go  over  to  the  enemy, 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  213 

which  as  a  matter  of  fact  was  absolutely  impossible ! 
Bratiano  had  gone  too  far  with  the  Allies  to  re- 
treat. Moreover  the  immense  majority  of  people  in 
the  country  were  for  war  against  the  Central  Powers, 
and  Bratiano  was  neither  big  enough  nor  strong 
enough  to  finally  thwart  the  desires  of  the  Rou- 
manian people. 

Sazonoff,  in  his  policy  towards  Bulgaria,  showed 
a  still  greater  lack  of  foresight,  and  allowed  himself 
to  be  completely  duped  by  Ferdinand  and  his  min- 
isters. It  was  so  evident  from  the  beginning  of  the 
war  that  Bulgaria  was  gradually  but  surely  going 
over  to  the  enemy's  camp!  German  officers  in  civ- 
ilian clothes  inundated  Sofia.  Guns  of  heavy  calibre, 
aeroplanes,  etc.,  were  being  constantly  sent  from 
Germany  into  Bulgarian  territory.  As  she  was  not 
yet  militarily  prepared,  it  was  only  natural  that 
her  diplomats  assured  Russia  that  Bulgaria  would 
maintain  a  rigid  neutrality.  But  the  numerous  Slav 
societies,  to  which  I  still  belong,  and  which  are  prin- 
cipally composed  of  men  who  know  and  understand 
our  brothers  in  the  Orient  very  well  indeed,  were  not 
in  the  least  deceived  by  the  Czar  of  Bulgaria !  More 
than  once,  in  resolutions  constantly  submitted  to  the 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  they  warned  him  of  the 
grave  danger  which  threatened.  But  M.  Sazonoff 
continued  to  follow  his  own  policies!  He  had  al- 
ways relied  on  P.  N.  MilioukofY,  who  became  the  first 
Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  after  the  Revolution. 


214     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

M.  MilioukofT  had  at  one  time  been  Professor  of 
History  in  the  University  of  Petrograd.  But  being 
a  participant  in  a  revolutionary  movement  he  was 
forced  to  escape  into  exile.  He  was  warmly  re- 
ceived in  Bulgaria,  and  was  given  the  Chair  of  His- 
tory in  the  University  of  Sofia.  Naturally  ever 
after  he  was  always  very  sympathetic  towards  Bul- 
garia. Furthermore  his  professional  temperament 
made  it  very  difficult  for  him  to  deviate  from  a 
course  which  he  had  once  determined  to  follow.  He 
was  sure  of  Bulgaria,  and  shut  his  eyes  to  all  evi- 
dences of  treachery,  even  when  they  were  most  ap- 
parent. He  might  be  classed  with  the  famous  band 
of  German  professors  at  the  Frankfort  Diet,  of 
whom  the  German  people  exclaimed: 

"Hundert  Professoren!  Vaterland,  du  bist  ver- 
loren!"  ("A  hundred  professors!  My  country, 
thou  art  lost!") 

Two  weeks  before  Bulgaria  declared  war  on 
Serbia,  M.  T.  Spolaikovitch,  Serbian  Minister  at 
Petrograd,  called  on  Sazonoff"  with  instructions  from 
Nikola  Paschitch,  President  of  the  Serbian  Council. 
He  told  our  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  that  there 
was  not  the  least  doubt  in  Serbia  that  Bulgaria  would 
very  shortly  enter  the  war  as  an  ally  of  the  Central 
Powers!  The  Serbian  Minister  asked  the  Russian 
Government's  authorization  for  the  Serbian  forces 
to  attack  Bulgaria  at  once !  He  stated  that  he  was 
sure  the  Serbian  Army,  already  hardened  by  fighting 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  215 

and  in  good  condition  whereas  Bulgaria  as  yet  had 
not  had  time  to  mobilize  her  forces,  could  easily  take 
Sofia.  Serbia  therefore  proposed  to  dethrone  Czar 
Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria,  to  arrest  all  German  officers, 
whether  in  mufti  or  in  uniform,  whom  they  could 
catch,  and  then  conclude  an  alliance  with  Bulgaria, 
by  opening  the  eyes  of  the  Bulgars  to  the  nefarious 
policies,  entirely  anti-Slav,  which  their  sovereign  had 
been  hatching. 

Sazonoff  was  terribly  upset.  He  threatened  to  de- 
mand the  resignation  of  Spolaikovitch  if  he  persisted 
in  maintaining  such  an  attitude.  A  stormy  scene 
between  the  two  diplomats  followed,  but  there  was 
nothing  else  for  the  Serbian  Minister  to  do  but  tele- 
graph to  Paschitch  all  that  Sazonoff  had  said.  The 
next  day,  Spolaikovitch  had  lunch  with  me.  The  un- 
happy man,  tears  streaming  down  his  face,  told  me 
the  details  of  his  interview  with  Sazonoff.  I  sug- 
gested that  he  should  talk  the  matter  over  with  Gore- 
mikine,  who  was  at  that  time  President  of  the  Coun- 
cil of  Ministers.  As  the  Serbian  Minister  accepted 
this  suggestion  wTith  alacrity,  I  at  once  telephoned  to 
Goremikine — asking  him  to  receive  Spolaikovitch. 
Goremikine  asked  the  Serbian  Minister  to  come  and 
see  him  at  once.  When  the  latter  told  him  of  his 
fears  the  old  statesman  said  to  him : 

''What  the  devil  did  you  go  to  Sazonoff  for?  You 
Serbians  should  have  acted!  You  know  Sazonoff  of 
old,  and  very  well.     Of  a  surety  it  is  not  he  who 


216     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

would  sanction  any  such  precipitate  action  however 
logical  it  might  be." 

The  incident  shows  how  even  in  such  dangerous 
times,  the  Russian  Cabinet  was  all  at  sixes  and  sevens 
on  the  most  vital  policies. 

A  few  days  after  Bulgaria  attacked  Serbia,  and 
the  poor  little  nation,  caught  between  the  heavy  cross 
fire  of  the  Bulgarians  and  the  Germans,  experienced 
complete  and  tragic  disaster ! 

The  untold  miseries  of  the  Serbian  people  have 
continued  even  after  their  political  existence  has 
vanished — let  us  hope  not  for  ever. 

The  Allies  had  tried  ever  since  the  war  began  to 
obtain  Italy's  assistance,  and  here  again  it  was  the 
Slavs,  and  especially  the  Serbians,  who  had  to  bear 
the  brunt  and  pay  the  price  for  Italian  participation. 
The  Italian  Chauvinists  insisted  on  compensation  in 
the  Balkans  and  Sazonoff  signed  a  treaty  with 
Italy  whereby  Italy — after  a  vigorous  campaign — 
should  obtain  not  only  Istria,  with  Trieste,  but  also 
a  portion  of  the  Dalmatian  Coast,  which  is  almost 
entirely  populated  by  Serbs.  Sazonoff  further  rec- 
ognized the  rights  of  Italy  in  Vallona,  the  Albanian 
port,  and  in  Adana,  in  the  northeastern  corner  of  the 
Mediterranean. 

When  the  pitiful  remnants  of  that  brave  little 
Serbian  army,  starving,  crushed  to  the  very  dust  by 
their  horrible  sufferings,  clothesless,  shoeless,  and 
wholly  destitute  after  a  truly  epic  march  across  the 


THE  WHIRLPOOL  217 

wilderness  of  Albanian  mountains,  headed  by  their 
heroic  King,  74  years  of  age,  who  insisted  upon  shar- 
ing the  miseries  of  his  soldiers,  finally  reached  the 
shores  of  the  Adriatic,  they  received  prompt  aid 
from  France  and  Greece.  France,  chivalrous  as 
ever,  sent  provisions  and  arms,  and  Greece  offered 
Corfu  as  a  refuge  for  the  Government  of  Serbia  and 
as  a  centre  in  which  the  Serbian  army  could  be  re- 
organized. 

Sazonoff's  fall,  however,  was  not  on  account  of  his 
foreign  policy.  It  was  the  result  of  a  memoir  he 
presented  to  Emperor  Nicholas  on  the  Polish 
question ! 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE   FOX    OF   THE   BALKANS 
Czar  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria 

The  Czar  of  Bulgaria  has  played  such  a  sinister  part 
in  the  European  tragedy  that  he  deserves  a  special 
pillory. 

Prince  Ferdinand  of  Coburg  had  a  sister  in 
Munich,  Princess  Amelie,  who  was  married  to  Duke 
Max  of  Bavaria,  and  Ferdinand  was  often  a  guest 
there.  In  1892  Europe  ignored  him  completely.  In 
point  of  fact  he  was  then  Prince  of  Bulgaria,  but  the 
European  Courts  still  regarded  him  as  Prince  of 
Coburg.  He  was  probably  informed  by  his  sister  of 
my  intimate  friendship  with  my  chief,  Count  Osten- 
Sacken,  and  when  I  met  him  for  the  first  time  at 
Bayreuth  at  a  Wagnerian  Festival  in  1893  he  went 
out  of  his  way  to  be  specially  courteous  to  me.  He 
hoped,  through  me,  to  influence  Count  Osten-Sacken, 
and  through  him  to  be  able  to  approach  Emperor 
Alexander  III,  who  so  far  had  obstinately  refused 
to  recognize  him.  A  brilliant  conversationalist,  a 
connoisseur  of  music,  speaking  the  flowery  French 
of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  and  knowing  full  well 

218 


THE  FOX  OF  THE  BALKANS  219 

how  best  to  use  his  excellent  knowledge  of  both  social 
and  diplomatic  history,  he  was  a  man,  once  known, 
never  to  be  forgotten.  A  few  years  later  I  met  him 
in  Berlin  on  the  occasion  of  his  first  official  visit  to  the 
German  capital  (1896),  after  his  official  recognition 
by  Nicholas  II.  But  the  German  Emperor,  wTho  had 
known  the  Prince  in  his  youth  and  disliked  him,  paid 
him  no  special  attentions  and  gave  him  what  was  con- 
sidered a  very  bad  reception.  The  Emperor  did  not 
come  to  the  station  to  meet  him  but  sent  a  minor 
Prince.  There  was  no  guard  of  honour  and  even 
the  Chancellor  of  the  Empire,  Prince  Ilohenlohe,  was 
conspicuous  by  his  absence. 

The  next  day  the  Emperor  opened  the  pan-German 
Exhibition  and  there  was  a  royal  procession  in  which 
the  Prince  of  Bulgaria  was  preceded  by  all  the 
Princes  of  Prussia  and  was  obliged  to  give  his  arm 
to  the  Countess  Keller,  who  wTas  only  a  lady  in  wait- 
ing to  the  Empress. 

After  the  opening  of  the  Exhibition,  Prince 
Ferdinand  came  to  the  Russian  Embassy  and  said, 
somewhat  bitterly,  to  Count  Osten-Sacken: 

''You  see,  Monsieur  l'Ainbassadeur,  how  they 
treat  the  Prince  of  Bulgaria  in  Berlin." 

The  Ambassador  replied:  ''Patience,  Monseig- 
neur,  you  are  clever  enough  and  diplomatic  enough  to 
be  able  to  arrange  such  things  to  your  liking." 

The  Ambassador  proved  right.  At  one  of  the  big 
regimental  luncheons,  the  Prince  of  Bulgaria  hap- 


220     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

pened  to  be  seated  beside  the  Emperor.  At  the  end 
of  the  luncheon,  Prince  Ferdinand -began  to  enter- 
tain the  Emperor  with  some  of  his  scandalous  anec- 
dotes. He  gradually  slipped  from  scandal  to  politi- 
cal matters  with  such  dexterity  that  the  German 
Emperor  did  not  recognize  where  he  was  being  led, 
but  remained  over  two  hours  talking  to  the  Prince 
whom  he  hitherto  had  affected  to  despise. 

As  a  result  the  Emperor  asked  the  Prince  to  pro- 
long his  stay  in  Berlin  for  one  or  two  days  more,  and 
when  Ferdinand  finally  left  Berlin,  William  went  to 
the  station  to  see  him  off.  After  his  departure,  Wil- 
liam came  to  the  Russian  Embassy,  and  said  to  Count 
Osten-Sacken : 

"My  dear  Count,  your  protege  from  Bulgaria  is 
a  very  adroit  fellow!"  (Votre  protege  de  Bulgarie 
est  un  coco!) 

In  this  way  Ferdinand  gained  his  point.  The 
tragi-comedy  of  the  situation  lay  in  the  fact  that  it 
was  through  Russian  diplomacy  that  Ferdinand  first 
became  a  friend  of  the  German  Emperor  and  this 
eventually  led  to  his  alliance  with  Germany  in  the 
Great  War. 

In  1908,  at  the  time  of  the  annexation  of  Bosnia- 
Herzegovina,  Russo-Bulgarian  relations  became  very 
strained  again.  At  Petrograd  every  one  was  cer- 
tain Ferdinand  had  allied  himself  by  secret  treaty 
with  Austria-Hungary.  The  Russian  Emperor  did 
not  recognize  his  title  of  Czar,  and  there  was  even 


THE  FOX  OF  THE  BALKANS  221 

some  question  of  breaking  off  our  diplomatic  rela- 
tions with  Sofia.  Under  these  difficult  circumstances 
Ferdinand  gave  proof  of  an  extremely  quick  mind. 

Grand  Duke  Vladimir  of  Russia,  who  was  an  inti- 
mate, personal  friend  of  his,  died  sudden]}-  at  Petro- 
grad  as  the  result  of  an  attack  of  influenza.  Ferdi- 
nand at  once  started  from  Sofia  to  take  part  in  the 
Grand  Duke's  obsequies.  He  decided  to  do  this  very 
abruptly,  and  was  already  on  his  way  to  the  Russian 
frontier  while  the  Russian  Court  was  still  undecided 
as  to  what  sort  of  a  reception  he  should  have.  He 
could  not  be  totally  ignored,  and  the  Emperor 
Nicholas  finding  his  hand  forced  accorded  him  royal 
honours.  Thus  his  recognition  by  the  Russian  court 
as  the  Czar  of  Bulgaria  was  automatically  accom- 
plished. It  was  a  master  stroke  on  Ferdinand's 
part. 

It  would  be  puerile  to  deny  that  he  is  an  extraor- 
dinarily able  and  clever  man.  He  has  an  especial 
gift  of  knowing  how  to  make  use_ofJhe  slightest  cir- 
cumstance favourableto_him1__To  flatter  those  who 
couldTurther  his  plans  he  was  apparently  ever  ready 
to  change  his  opinions. 

He  once  told  the  Turkish  Ambassador  to  Berlin, 
Achmet  Tev/fik  Pasha,  that  were  he  not  a  Catholic, 
he  would  prefer  above  anything  else  to  be  a  Mussul- 
man. The  very  next  day  he  confessed  to  the  High 
Priest  of  our  Church,  Father  A.  Maltzoff,  his  un- 
bounded admiration  for  the  Orthodox  belief!     He 


222     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

kissed  the  hand  of  the  Sultan  of  Turkey,  and  of  Em- 
peror Francis  Joseph  of  Austria,  and  bowed  double 
before  the  Emperors  of  Germany  and  Russia.  When 
necessary,  he  would  emphasize  his  French  anteced- 
ents, and  claim  descent  from  Louis  XIV,  the  King 
of  the  Sun.  (Ferdinand  is  the  son  of  Princess 
Clementine  of  France,  daughter  of  Louis  Philippe, 
last  King  of  the  French.)  But  this  did  not  at  all 
prevent  him,  on  other  occasions,  from  fervently  de- 
claring he  was  a  German  Prince.  An  international 
chameleon,  he  became  Russian  for  the  Russians, 
French  for  the  French,  and  German  for  the  Ger- 
mans! He  avoided  only  declaring  himself  a  Bul- 
garian !  He  despises  the  people  he  adopted  to  rule 
over  them.  Worse  still  he  suspects  them  always. 
When  he  shakes  hands  with  one  of  his  subjects  he  is 
carefully  gloved,  as  he  dreads  catching  some  disease 
or  other.  The  Bulgars  reciprocate  his  feelings  to- 
ward them,  and  he  is  far  from  being  popular,  but 
such  is  his  ability  that  he  is  absolute  master  of  them, 
and  in  difficult  moments  all  eyes  are  turned  toward 
the  Royal  Palace  watching  for  his  decision. 

Political  intrigue  was  ever  his  favourite  pastime. 
He  supported  Stambouloff,  a  very  popular  states- 
man in  Bulgaria,  in  order  to  consolidate  his  own  posi- 
tion with  the  people,  and  connived  in  Stambouloff 's 
death,  who  was  assassinated  in  the  streets  of  Sofia, 
because  he  believed  that  statesman  stood  in  the  way 
of  his  recognition  by  Russia.     To  achieve  his  own 


THE  FOX  OP  THE  BALKANS  223 

ends  he  used  the  diplomats  accredited  to  his  court 
by  other  nations,  with  consummate  skill,  intuitively 
picking  out  their  weak  points  the  first  time  he  met 
them.  Not  wishing  France  and  Russia  to  unite  on 
any  policy  inimical  to  him,  with  incredible  cunning 
he  contrived  to  alienate  Monsieur  Paleologue,  the 
French  Minister,  and  M.  Sementovsky,  the  Russian 
Minister  at  Sofia.  The  Russian  Minister  told  me 
that  things  had  gone  so  far  that  he  preferred  to 
work  with  his  German  colleague,  Baron  Romberg, 
rather  than  with  Monsieur  Paleologue,  and  this  at  a 
time  when  the  Franco-Russian  Alliance  was  very 
strong. 

Very  soon  after  his  recognition  as  Czar  of  Bul- 
garia by  Russia,  the  question  of  a  political  treaty 
and  military  convention  between  Russia  and  Bul- 
garia was  raised.  Ferdinand  hastened— to— declare 
himself  an  ardent  partisan  of  such  a  convention,  but 
promptly  set  to  work  against  it  secretly_.  This  was 
quite  natural  seeing  that  since  1908  he  had  linked  the 
interests  of  his  country  with  those  of  the  Habsburg 
Mpnarchj^__Each  clause  of  the  projected  treaty  was 
objected  to  by  the  Bulgarian  Government.  Ferdi- 
nand suddenly  became  an  ultra-constitutional  mon- 
arch, and  complained  to  the  Russian  Minister  at 
Sofia  that  he  could  do  nothing.  In  consequence  al- 
though they  wore  exceedingly  flattering  to  Bulgaria 
the  Political  Treaty  and  the  Military  Convention 
failed  utterly. 


224     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Fate  should  have  made  Ferdinand  an  actor,  as  he 
would  most  certainly  have  eclipsed  the  talent  of 
either  a  Coquelin  or  a  Rossi.  On  a  throne  he  was 
neither  more  nor  less  than  a  traitor.  When  he  kissed 
the  Sultan's  hand  he  was  planning  his  ruin.  When 
he  held  out  his  hand  in  friendship  to  Serbia  his  mind 
was  scheming  the  betrayal  of  that  nation.  He  asked 
for  reinforcements  from  his  Serbian  ally  for  the 
taking  of  Adrianople,  and  at  the  same  time  was  dis- 
cussing the  best  way  to  seize  Macedonia,  despite 
Serbia.  He  deceived  every  one  at  every  opportunity, 
not  omitting  his  own  country,  which  he  forced  to  fol- 
low an  anti-Slav  and  anti-national  policy.  If  any 
opportunity  arises  in  the  present  war  he  will  not 
hesitate  to  embarrass  his  ally,  the  German  Emperor, 
should  favourable  conditions  arise  for  so  doing. 

In  his  private  life  Ferdinand  is  a  tyrant  and  a 
deceiver.  His  first  wife,  a  Princess  of  Parma,  killed 
herself,  as  she  could  not  bear  his  treatment  any 
longer.  The  Princess  of  Reuss,  his  second  wife, 
who  has  died  since  the  beginning  of  the  present  war, 
was  reduced  solely  to  playing  the  part  of  a  nurse  to 
her  children.  Her  sons  hardly  dared  speak  in  his 
presence. 

Ferdinand  is  very  much  afraid  of  contagious  dis- 
eases, and  of  attacks  against  his  person.  During  the 
present  war,  in  order  to  give  himself  courage,  he  has 
taken  to  alcohol.  His  sleep  is  short  and  very  dis- 
turbed.    He   changes   his   sleeping  quarters   every 


THE  FOX  OF  THE  BALKANS  225 

night.  At  meals  he  insists  that  members  of  his  fam- 
ily or  even  one  of  his  guests  taste  the  dishes  before 
he  will  touch  them.  Perhaps  he  may  escape  the  vio- 
lent death  he  fears,  but  he  will  not  escape  the  im- 
partial judgment  of  history,  having  made  a  German 
province  of  the  Slav  nation  which  by  evil  fortune  had 
him  as  its  sovereign.  Immensely  vain  of  the  re- 
sult of  the  war  with  Turkey,  he  had  himself  photo- 
graphed in  the  costume  of  a  Byzantine  Emperor! 
The  livery  of  a  footman  to  the  German  Emperor 
would  suit  him  ever  so  much  better! 


CHAPTER  X 


THE    EVE    OF    REVOLUTION 


The  Last  Foreign  Ministers  of  Nicholas  II — Stunner,  Pokrowsky, 
Vice-Minister  Neratoff — The  Ambassadors 

Sazonoff  was  replaced  by  Monsieur  Sturmer,  who 
was  at  the  time  President  of  the  Ministerial  Council. 
He  was  nothing  but  a  courtier.  For  many  years  he 
had  occupied  the  position  of  Master  of  Ceremonies 
at  court.  After  that  he  was  governor  of  two  differ- 
ent provinces  where  he  proved  himself  to  be  an  out 
and  out  reactionary,  and,  finally  he  became  a  member 
of  the  Council  of  Empire.  He  never  made  a  speech 
in  Council,  contenting  himself  by  voting  with  the 
Party  of  the  Extreme  Right,  and  he  knew  absolutely 
nothing  of  our  foreign  policy.  He  was  entirely  pre- 
occupied by  his  efforts  to  hold  his  position.  He  was 
as  false  as  an  imitation  coin.  On  the  day  before  his 
nomination  as  President  of  the  Council,  I  met  him 
at  M.  Goremikine's  residence,  against  whom  he  was 
constantly  plotting  and  intriguing,  and  whom  he  was 
to  succeed  on  the  morrow,  though  Goremikine  did 
not  know  that  at  the  time.     I  heard  him  assure  the 

226 


THE  EVE  OP  REVOLUTION  227 

old  statesman  of  his  absolute  devotion  and  admira- 
tion. 

When  he  was  appointed  Foreign  Minister  he  placed 
himself  entirely  in  the  hands  of  M.  Neratoff,  the  Vice- 
Minister  and  disciple  of  Sazonoff.  Our  policy  there- 
fore remained  the  same,  though  if  anything  it  became 
more  generally  muddled,  as  the  new  minister  thought 
far  more  of  himself  and  of  his  own  position  than  he 
did  qjLaJEairs  of  state.  Stunner  is  generally  accused 
of  having  lecPrlussia  towards  a  separate  peace.  I 
know  for  instance  that  Sir  George  Buchanan,  the 
British  Ambassador  to  Petrograd,  was  of  this  opin- 
ion, but  personally  I  do  not  agree  with  this  point  of 
view.  Sturmer  only  obeyed  his  Imperial  master's 
orders,  and  Emperor  Nicholas  II,  with  all  his  faults, 
would  never  have  been  a  traitor,  nor  would  he  ever 
have  signed  a  separate  peace.  I  am  convinced  of 
this  because  I  discussed  the  point  with  Goremikine, 
and  also  with  persons  of  the  immediate  entourage  of 
the  Emperor. 

The  last  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  under  Nicho- 
las II  was  M.  Pokrowsky,  who  held  office  for  only  two 
months.  His  appointment  by  the  Emperor  was 
wholly  unexpected;  but  for  once  Nicholas  was  fortu- 
nate in  his  choice.  The  new  minister  had  passed  his 
official  life  in  the  department  of  finance.  Count 
"Witte  had  been  the  first  to  recognize  his  great  ca- 
pacity and  possibilities,  and  Count  Kokowtzoff  ap- 
pointed him  Assistant  Minister  of  Finance.    He  then 


228     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

became  a  Member  of  the  Council  of  the  Empire  and, 
prior  to  becoming  Foreign  Minister,  occupied  the 
post  of  State  Controller,  with  rank  equivalent  to  a 
minister  of  state.  He  had  never  meddled  with  Rus- 
sia's foreign  policy  in  any  way,  but  as  he  was  very 
intelligent  and  gifted  with  a  large  degree  of  natural 
finesse  he  soon  became  familiar  with  the  duties  and 
responsibilities  of  his  new  position. 

The  personnel  of  the  ministry  received  him  at  first 
with  a  great  deal  of  scepticism,  and  the  various  chiefs 
of  the  bureaux  were  sure  that  he  would  prove  a  docile 
instrument  in  their  hands.  But  they  soon  recognized 
to  their  pained  surprise,  that  in  Pokrowsky  they  had 
a  stern  chief,  who  knew  how  to  enforce  his  orders. 

Pokrowsky  was  thoroughly  aware  of  the  perilous 
situation  in  which  Russia  was  placed.  He  reiterated 
time  and  time  again  that  the  abnormal  conditions 
then  existing  in  the  Empire  must  not  last,  indeed 
could  not  last,  and  that  he  clearly  saw  a  terrible 
revolution  approaching.  One  evening  in  his  private 
study,  he  went  to  a  window  which  overlooked  the 
square  before  the  Imperial  Palace,  where  stands  the 
column  of  Alexander  I,  surrounded  by  four  great 
bronze  candelabra.  I  asked  him  what  he  was  gazing 
at  so  intently. 

"My  dear  friend,"  said  he,  "I  am  admiring  those 
beautiful  candelabra,  and  asking  myself  from  which 
of  the  four  I  may  soon  be  hung." 

But  hi3  fears  were  groundless.    When  the  Revo- 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  229 

lution  broke  out  he  was  not  even  arrested  or 
molested.  More  than  this,  the  Provisional  Govern- 
ment authorized  him  to  keep  his  offices  in  the  ministry 
building  until  he  found  suitable  ones  elsewhere.  He 
had  known  how  to  win  the  esteem  of  the  most  extreme 
parties  by  his  frankness,  his  honesty  and  his  pro- 
gressive ideas. 

Among  the  officials  of  the  Foreign  Office  during 
the  reign  of  Nicholas  II,  it  is  necessary  to  mention 
M.  Neratoff,  who,  though  only  Assistant  Minister, 
nevertheless  played  an  ill-fated  part  in  our  diplo- 
macy. He  was  nothing  but  a  windbag.  He  began 
his  diplomatic  career  some  thirty-five  years  before 
the  Revolution,  and  starting  in  the  modest  position 
of  a  minor  attache  at  the  ministry,  finished  by  reach- 
ing the  post  of  Assistant  Minister  without  ever  hav- 
ing been  attached  to  any  of  our  embassies  or  lega- 
tions abroad.  His  mental  capacity  was  hardly 
mediocre.  His  entire  success  he  owed  to  his  zeal  and 
to  his  very  thorough  knowledge  of  the  contents  of 
our  diplomatic  archives.  He  had  been  at  college 
with  Sazonoff,  who  later  appointed  him  Assistant 
Minister,  and  since  then  always  had  the  sense  to 
make  himself  indispensable  to  all  the  foreign  minis- 
ters, despite  their  widely  divergent  mentalities  and 
ideas.  Sturmer,  Pokrowsky,  MilioukofF,  and  even 
Terestchenko  could  not  do  without  his  collaboration. 

These  ministers  succeeded  one  another  as  in  a 
moving  picture  play,  but  Neratoff  stayed  on  securely 


230     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

at  his  post.  Petrograd  hummed,  "The  world  may 
come,  the  world  may  go,  but  Neratoff  stays  on  for 
ever."  The  representatives  of  foreign  powers  dealt 
especially  with  him,  and  visited  him  daily  in  their 
official  capacities.  He  was  no  longer  the  little  Nera- 
toff of  olden  days.  He  had  become  the  right  hand 
man  of  all  the  ministers.  But  his  mentality  did  not 
change  either;  he  was  ever  the  same  as  on  the  first 
day  he  entered  the  service,  always  very  eager  to 
execute  the  orders  of  his  superiors,  a  hard  worker, 
but  painfully  narrow  minded,  and  wholly  devoid  of 
any  of  the  attributes  of  the  great  statesman  he  fondly 
imagined  he  resembled.  His  influence  was  especially 
pernicious  in  Balkan  affairs.  He  was  completely 
hypnotized  by  the  personal  charm  of  Milioukoff,  and 
like  Sazonoff,  was  blindly  led  by  Ferdinand  of  Bul- 
garia. In  short,  "little"  Neratoff  was  a  tragic  per- 
sonality in  the  annals  of  our  diplomacy.  His  period 
at  the  foreign  office  will  be  marked  with  a  black  cross 
by  any  impartial  critic  of  Russian  history. 

In  order  that  Russian  diplomacy  and  policies  dur- 
ing the  reign  of  Nicholas  II  up  to  the  outbreak  of  the 
Revolution  may  be  understood  by  the  world  at  large, 
it  is  necessary  to  give  some  particulars  concerning 
our  more  important  ambassadors  and  ministers,  and 
the  representatives  of  the  Allied  Powers,  accredited 
to  Petrograd.  Nicholas  II  had  three  ambassadors  at 
Berlin  during  his  reign:  Count  ChouvalonyClQunt 
Osten-Sacken  a-ndJ^l.  Sverbeef.     Count  Chouvaloff 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  231 

had  been  appointed  by  Alexander  III.  Prior  to  be- 
ing made  an  ambassador,  he  had  had  nothing  to  do 
with  our  foreign  policies.  He  was  a  general  who 
had  distinguished  himself  in  the  Russo-Turkish  War 
1877-78,  and  had  won  the  military  cross  of  St.  George 
for  meritorious  services.  He  commanded  the  Im- 
perial Guard  Corps  at  the  time  that  Alexander  III 
chose  him  as  his  ambassador  at  Berlin.  He  soon 
accustomed  himself  to  his  new  position,  and  his  mili- 
tary manners  gave  much  satisfaction  at  the  German 
capital.  It  did  not  take  him  long  to  become  a  diplo- 
mat of  much  finesse  and  adroitness.  He  learned  how 
to  steer  a  safe  course  between  Scylla  and  Charybdis. 
Prince  Bismarck  was  his  intimate  friend,  and  at  the 
same  time  he  managed  to  enjoy  the  German  Emper- 
or's highest  favour  and  esteem.  His  popularity  at 
Berlin  was  tremendous,  especially  in  military  circles, 
and  he  was  very  fond  of  surrounding  himself  with 
officers,  and — as  all  good  Russians  are  very  fond 
of  wine — did  not  disdain  to  become  hilariously  drunk 
with  them.  But  he  had  one  priceless  trait :  after  hav- 
ing consumed  an  incredibly  large  amount  of  liquor 
he  always  remembered  everything  he  had  said  and 
far  more  important,  he  also  remembered  everything 
said  to  him. 

M.  de  Bacheracht,  Secretary  of  the  Embassy,  with 
whom  the  Ambassador  especially  liked  to  work,  told 
me  the  following  story : 

One  evening  Count  Herbert  Bismarck,  son  of  the 


232     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Chancellor  and  secretary  in  the  German  foreign  of- 
fice, came  to  see  ChouvalofT.  Count  Herbert  was  not 
a  man  to  deny  the  pleasures  of  wine  either.  The  two 
drank  heavily  until  both  diplomats  were  hors-de- 
combat.  Count  Herbert,  his  tongue  loosened  by 
wine,  began  to  make  a  confidant  of  our  ambassador, 
and  told  him  many  very  indiscreet  but  highly  inter- 
esting things.  ChouvalofT  only  replied  with  foolish 
jests  and  laughter,  but  no  sooner  was  the  German  out 
of  the  Embassy  than  the  ambassador,  after  plunging 
his  head  in  a  basin  of  iced  water,  sent  for  Bacheracht 
and  dictated  word  for  word  a  report  of  all  the  Ger- 
man diplomat  had  foolishly  confided  to  him. 

When  Chouvaloff  left  Berlin,  being  recalled  by 
Nicholas,  and  made  Governor-General  of  Poland— 
the  Emperor  came  in  person  to  the  station  to  salute 
and  say  au  revoir  to  his  friend,  whom  he  honoured 
by  calling  him  "mein  teure  freund."  Chouvaloff 
left  nothing  but  universal  regret  in  Berlin,  and  wrote 
a  brilliant  page  in  the  annals  of  our  diplomacy. 

I  have  already  on  several  occasions  referred  to  my 
chief,  Count  Osten-Sacken,  who  was  ChouvalofT 's 
successor  at  Berlin,  and  who  stayed  there  fifteen 
years,  all  through  the  most  dangerous  and  trying 
times  of  our  relations  with  the  German  Empire. 
Count  Osten-Sacken  was  the  son  of  the  famous  hero 
of  Sebastopol.  His  family  originated  in  the  Baltic 
provinces  and  his  ancestors  were  all  of  the  Ortho- 
dox  religion,   and   Russians   heart   and   soul.     His 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  233 

grandfather  had  been  killed  on  the  battlefield  during 
the  Napoleonic  Wars,  and  his  great  uncle  Prince 
Osten-Sacken  had  been  Military  Governor  of  Paris 
in  1815.  He  had  married  a  Princess  Dolgorouki, 
whose  ancestors  had  reigned  in  Moscow.  He  was  her 
second  husband.  Her  first  was  Prince  Golitzin,  our 
ex-Ambassador  to  Madrid.  Countess  Osten-Sacken 
was  a  woman  of  an  exceedingly  rare  type.  Married 
when  she  was  only  sixteen  to  Prince  Golitzin,  she  had 
begun  her  wedded  life  in  Paris,  and  had  received  in 
her  salon  the  flower  of  the  French  diplomatic  and 
political  world  of  the  day.  Messieurs  Guizot  and 
Thiers  were  her  intimates,  and  Chopin  himself  gave 
her  piano  lessons.  Count  Osten-Sacken  had  been 
Secretary  of  our  Embassy  at  Madrid  when  Prince 
Golitzin  was  Ambassador.  It  was  there  that  he  first 
met  his  future  wife,  whom  he  married  shortly  after 
the  death  of  the  Prince.  Countess  Osten-Sacken  was 
of  inestimable  value  and  a  powerful  support  to  her 
husband.  She  had  been  a  childhood  friend  and  play- 
mate of  many  of  the  Eussian  Grand  Duchesses,  and 
her  position  at  court  was  a  most  distinguished  one. 
She  knew  all  the  secrets.  Emperor  Nicholas  was  es- 
pecially fond  of  her,  and  always  did  her  the  honour 
of  kissing  her  hand  wherever  and  whenever  they  met. 
The  German  Emperor  did  the  same  thing.  In  her 
private  life  the  Countess  was  simplicity  personified, 
kind  and  affable  to  all,  without  excepting  the  most 
humble  of  her  servants.     Towards  the  members  of 


234     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

her  official  family,  she  was  like  a  tender  mother,  and 
we  all  cherish  reverently  affectionate  memories  of 
this  noble  woman. 

Count  Osten-Sacken  began  his  diplomatic  career  at 
eighteen  years  of  age,  as  Attache  at  the  Chancellery 
of  Prince  Paskevitch,  Commander  of  the  Russian 
armies  on  the  Danube  in  the  Russo-Turkish  Wars 
(1854).  After  a  short  subsequent  stay  as  Secretary 
to  the  Chancellery  at  Petrograd,  and  also  as  Secre- 
tary of  the  Embassy  at  Madrid,  he  left  diplomatic 
life  and  did  not  re-enter  it  until  1864,  being  appointed 
at  that  time  first  Secretary  and  afterwards  Charge 
d 'Affaires  at  Turin  and  at  Florence.  From  there  he 
went  as  Minister  Resident  to  Darmstadt,  and  then  as 
Minister  to  Munich,  from  which  place  he  was  ap- 
pointed Ambassador  to  Berlin  in  1895.  He  had 
spent  more  than  forty  years  of  his  diplomatic  life  in 
Germany,  and  naturally  knew  it  most  thoroughly  in 
consequence,  but  strangely  enough,  both  he  and  his 
wife  massacred  the  German  language  horribly.  A 
diplomat  of  the  old  school,  he  always  spoke  French 
by  preference,  and  although  extremely  Russian  by 
nature  and  sentiment,  he  wrote  Russian  with  the 
greatest  of  difficulty.  When  Alexander  III  replaced 
French  by  Russian  in  the  diplomatic  reports  and 
communications  Count  Osten-Sacken  was  at  first 
much  embarrassed,  but  despite  his  great  age,  he  set 
to  work  like  any  schoolboy  to  learn  it.  and  in  two 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  235 

years  his  official  reports  written  in  the  Russian  lan- 
guage were  used  as  models  at  Petrograd. 

From  the  previous  chapters,  it  must  be  evident 
what  a  great  part  Count  Osten-Sacken  played  in 
Berlin  during  most  trying  times.  Destined  always 
to  suffer  for  the  incredible  and  stupid  caprices  of 
Nicholas  IT  and  to  support  the  intemperances,  idiotic 
rages,  and  sullennesses  of  the  German  Emperor,  it 
was  only  his  absolute  poise  and  dignity  which  made 
him  so  respected,  both  in  Berlin  and  Petrograd,  and 
enabled  him  to  prevent  any  very  serious  complica- 
tions. In  brief  he  was  a  great  ambassador,  and  when 
he  disappeared,  though  he  was  then  practically  at  the 
end  of  his  span  of  life,  old  and  very  frail,  Russian 
diplomacy  soon  learned  what  a  brain  and  character 
it  had  lost. 

M.  Sverbeef  was  his  successor.  He  had  previ- 
ously been  Minister  to  Greece  for  about  two  years. 
He  owed  his  sudden  appointment  exclusively  to  his 
friendship  with  Sazonoff.  He  was  a  good  man,  noth- 
ing more.  He  had  very  little  personality.  He  could 
not  hold  the  German  Emperor  in  check,  and  the  latter 
never  took  him  seriously.  One  day  for  instance,  at 
the  time  of  the  last  visit  of  Nicholas  IT  to  Berlin,  at 
luncheon  in  one  of  the  barracks  of  the  Imperial 
Guard,  Sverbeef,  contrary  to  usual  etiquette,  ap- 
peared in  full  uniform,  wearing  the  Grand  Cordon 
of  Prussia,  which  had  been  bestowed  on  him  the 


236     EECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

day  before.     Emperor  William  made  fun  of  his  cos 
tume,  and  said  to  him, 

"It  is  easy  to  see  that  you  are  a  civilian." 

To  which  Sverbeef  answered,  "I  am  so  happy, 
Sire,  at  having  received  your  Grand  Cordon  that  I 
sleep  in  it. ' ' 

The  Emperor  shot  back,  "And  you  are  right,  you 
received  it  very  quickly — now  endeavour  to  deserve 
it." 

I  would  very  much  like  to  have  been  present  on 
any  occasion  when  the  Emperor  would  have  dared 
say  any  such  thing  to  Count  Osten-Sacken !  Sver- 
beef was  absent  from  Berlin  during  the  summer  of 
1914  at  the  time  our  relations  with  Germany  were 
becoming  more  and  more  strained.  When  he  re- 
turned, he  said  to  M.  Bronewsky,  Councillor  of  the 
Embassy, 

' '  I  believe,  mon  cher,  that  things  are  not  going  so 
well  here." 

Five  days  later  his  passports  were  handed  to  him. 
I  think  that  this  one  detail  suffices  to  show  how  much 
our  ambassador  realized  the  seriousness  of  the 
situation. 

Nicholas  II  was  represented  in  Paris  by  three  am- 
bassadors during  his  reign,  Baron  de  Mohrenheim, 
M.  NelidofT,  and  M.  Iswolsky.  I  have  already  dealt 
fully  with  the  last  named.  As  for  Baron  Mohren- 
heim and  M.  Nelidoff,  they  were  both  incontest- 
ably  statesmen,  with  horizons  and  understandings. 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  237 

Baron  de  Mohrenheim  had  contributed  much  to  our 
alliance  with  France  and  M.  NelidofT  had  been  one 
of  our  most  brilliant  ambassadors  in  Turkey.  Both 
men  enjoyed  in  Paris  positions  of  enormous  influence. 
The  recall  of  Nelidoff  was  solely  due  to  an  intrigue 
on  the  part  of  Iswolsky,  which  eventually  forced 
Iswolsky's  fall  from  the  Foreign  Office.  He  had, 
however,  prepared  for  himself  a  comfortable  nest  in 
Paris. 

During  the  same  period  we  had  in  London  two  am- 
bassadors, Baron  de  Staal,  and  Count  Benckendorff. 
The  first  was  a  diplomat  of  the  old  school,  prudent, 
and  avoiding  all  serious  action.  He  made  a  very 
good  position  for  himself  in  the  British  capital,  and 
was  very  clever  in  smoothing  over  any  difficulties  he 
discovered  in  his  diplomatic  path.  The  services  he 
rendered  Russia  are  not  to  be  denied,  especially  if 
one  takes  into  consideration  that  in  his  day,  we  were 
at  the  climax  of  Russo-British  antagonism. 

His  successor,  Count  Benckendorff,  was  one  of  our 
greatest  ambassadors.  Although  he  was  of  German 
origin,  and  had  a  sister  married  to  Prince  Hatzfeldt, 
Duke  of  Trachenberg,  and  also  a  Catholic,  Bencken- 
dorff was  Slav  to  his  backbone.  He  was  even  more 
Russian  than  the  Russians.  An  eye  witness  told  me 
that  he  had  tears  in  his  eyes  when  he  received  a  dis- 
patch from  Sazonoff  consenting  to  the  abandonment 
of  Scutari  by  the  victorious  Montenegrin  army.  The 
Serbian  people  had  in  him  a  powerful  and  convincing 


238     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

champion.  I  do  not  think  that  I  exaggerate  in  the 
least  when  I  assert  that  to  Count  Benckendorff  the 
Slavic  world  owes  the  recognition  of  its  interests  by 
Great  Britain. 

At  Vienna,  after  Prince  Lobanoff,  we  had  no  am- 
bassadors worth  mentioning.  Count  Kapnist,  who 
succeeded  him,  was  perhaps  the  only  one  who  made  a 
position  for  himself  in  the  Austro-Hungarian  politi- 
cal world.  As  for  M.  de  Giers,  eldest  son  of  our 
ex-Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  and  Schebeko,  the 
former  was  an  absolute  nonentity,  and  the  latter  was 
only  in  Vienna  for  a  short  time. 

Among  our  ambassadors  at  Rome,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  mention  M.  N.  de  Giers,  second  son  of  our  ex- 
Foreign  Minister.  He  had  a  long  diplomatic  career 
behind  him,  and  was  the  last  ambassador  to  Turkey, 
before  our  rupture  with  that  country.  Physically 
and  morally  he  is  his  father's  understudy;  he  is  pru- 
dent and  not  entirely  lacking  in  finesse,  but  he  is  not 
equal  to  any  great  sustained  action.  His  appoint- 
ment as  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  was  often 
mooted,  and  of  a  surety,  had  he  received  the  office  he 
would  not  have  been  guilty  of  the  blunders  made  by 
Sazonoff. 

At  Constantinople,  there  were  three  ambassadors 
during  the  reign  of  Nicholas  II;  M.  Zinovieff,  M. 
Tcharikow,  and  M.  de  Giers,  (junior).  I  have  al- 
ready described  the  last  and  pass  on  to  M.  Zino- 
vieff.    He  was  a  deep  student  and  connoisseur  of 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  239 

Oriental  matters  and  had  spent  part  of  his  career  in 
the  Balkans  and  part  in  Turkey.  He  had  been  Min- 
ister to  Persia,  and  Director  of  the  First  Department 
of  Foreign  Affairs,  under  which  came  all  matters 
relating  to  Turkey.  On  one  occasion  in  negotiating 
a  treaty  with  Persia,  the  foreign  office  was  ready  to 
accede  to  certain  amendments  desired  by  the  Persian 
government.  Zinovieff  ignored  his  official  instruc- 
tions and  insisted  upon  the  original  conditions.  He 
always  had  a  revolver  on  his  writing  table,  as  he  had 
fully  decided  to  kill  himself  if  his  plans  failed. 
When  he  was  ambassador  at  Constantinople  he  con- 
stantly asserted  that  the  Young  Turk  party  would 
of  a  certainty  fall  into  the  hands  of  Germany,  and 
he  strongly  advised  us  not  to  support  that  party. 
But  in  Great  Britain,  the  Young  Turks  were  in  high 
favour  so  the  Petrograd  Cabinet,  which  was  then  di- 
rected by  Iswolsky,  being  most  anxious  for  a  com- 
plete understanding  with  Great  Britain  was  not  in- 
clined to  follow  Zinovieff 's  advice,  or  heed  his  warn- 
ings. 

The  old  diplomat  was  therefore  recalled,  and  his 
place  filled  by  N.  V.  Tcharikow,  who  was  a  pro- 
Young  Turk,  and  thus  quite  unconsciously,  the  way 
was  opened  for  a  Turko-German  Alliance.  The 
idealistic  policy  and  attitude  towards  the  Young 
Turks  adopted  by  the  London  Cabinet,  and  the  natu- 
ral desire  of  our  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  to  sup- 
port British  statesmanship,  played  directly  into  the 


240     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

German  Emperor's  hands.  Indeed,  the  British 
Liberal  Party  treated  the  Young  Turk  party  almost 
as  co-religionists,  taking  into  no  consideration  the 
fact  that  their  leader,  Enver  Pasha,  was  an  out-and- 
out  German  mercenary. 

As  for  our  ministers  accredited  to  the  smaller  na- 
tions, it  is  only  necessary  to  mention  those  who  were 
really  able  men,  or  those  who  by  their  misplaced 
activities  did  the  greatest  harm.  Among  the  first 
are,  N.  H.  de  Hartwig  and  D.  K.  Sementovsky- 
Kuzilo;  among  the  second,  A.  W.  Nikludoff  and 
A.  N.  Savinsky. 

M.  de  Hartwig  after  having  been  Vice-Director  and 
later  Director  of  the  first  department  in  the  bureau  of 
Foreign  Affairs  (the  Asiatic  department)  repre- 
sented our  government  in  Persia,  and  afterwards  in 
Serbia.  He  was  very  far-sighted,  and  perfectly  un- 
derstood the  troubles  which  were  agitating  Persia 
even  in  his  day.  He  felt  we  should  uphold  the  Shah. 
He  also  knew  very  well  that  Persia  was  not  yet  ready 
for  a  constitution,  and  that  the  Shah  and  only  the 
Shah,  was  the  foundation  stone  of  order  in  his  coun- 
try. Furthermore  SLah  Mahomet  Ali  was  devoted  to 
Russia  body  and  soul,  and  this  was  still  another  rea- 
son why  we  should  have  given  him  our  whole-hearted 
support.  The  British  Liberal  Cabinet,  however,  was 
anxious  to  support  a  constitutional  government  in 
Persia.  When  in  1907,  Iswolsky  concluded  his 
Treaty  with  England  which  divided  Persia  into  two 


M.    SAZONOFF 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  241 

zones  of  influence,  Shah  Mahomet  Ali  abdicated  in 
favour  of  his  young  son.  As  a  result  of  our  policy 
we  lost  our  influence  in  southern  Persia,  and  German 
influence  replaced  that  of  England  at  Teheran,  just 
as  it  had  done  in  Constantinople.  In  brief,  Britain's 
idealism  opened  the  road  for  German  intrigue  and 
Realpolitik,  whereas  if  Russia  and  Britain  had  fol- 
lowed the  road  of  their  own  interests  they  would 
have  weakened  the  German  position.  M.  de  Hartwig 
fought  his  hardest,  and  in  consequence  was  the  bete 
noire  of  the  Germans.  Iswolsky  sacrificed  him  and 
sent  him  to  Serbia,  possibly  with  the  hope  that  in  the 
very  slippery  and  dangerous  Balkan  region,  he  might 
break  his  neck. 

But  shortly  after  his  arrival  at  Belgrade,  Hartwig 
created  a  most  exceptional  position  for  himself. 
The  King,  Prince  Alexander  Paschitch,  none  of 
these  made  any  decision  without  first  consulting  him. 
He  had  cleverly  instilled  in  the  minds  of  all  the 
Serbian  parties  a  love  for  Russia.  I  have  seen  him 
at  his  work,  having  been  his  guest  for  some  time  at 
Belgrade  in  1912.  Every  morning  his  study  was  be- 
sieged by  Serbian  statesmen  who  came  to  get  advice 
from  him,  but  as  usual  the  saying  that  a  prophet  is 
not  without  honour  save  in  his  own  country  held  true, 
and  Iswolsky  and  Sazonoff,  possibly  fearing  a  suc- 
cessor in  Hartwig,  took  it  upon  themselves  to  para- 
lyze his  actions  and  nullify  his  work.  When  Hart- 
wig warned  our  ministry  that  the  first  Balkan  War 


242     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

was  inevitable,  Sazonoff  sent  him  a  note  with  orders 
to  advise  a  moderate  course  to  the  Serbian  govern- 
ment. Hartwig  told  me  personally  of  the  reception 
that  such  notes  received  at  the  hands  of  the  Serbian 
government.  One  day  when  our  minister  had  read 
one  of  these  innumerable  notes  sent  by  Sazonoff  to 
M.  Paschitch,  the  old  Serbian  statesman  said  to  him, 

''Have  you  finished,  mon  cher  ami?  All  right! 
C'est  bien.  Nous  pouvons  maintenant  causer  seri- 
eusement!"  (We  can  now  discuss  matters  seri- 
ously.) 

While  M.  Hartwig  was  at  Belgrade,  D.  K.  Semen- 
tovsky,  also  a  very  able  man,  and  one  who  knew  the 
Balkan  situation  thoroughly,  was  our  minister  at 
Sofia.  Both  these  men  were  friends  of  long  stand- 
ing and  understood  each  other  perfectly,  but  their 
combined  efforts  were  of  no  avail  against  the  preju- 
dices of  our  foreign  ministers. 

Hartwig  died  very  suddenly  after  drinking  a  cup 
of  black  coffee  at  the  residence  of  the  Austro-Hun- 
garian  minister.  As  it  was  well  known  in  Belgrade 
that  our  minister  was  hated  and  feared  by  the  Aus- 
trians,  of  whom  he  was  the  sworn  enemy,  public 
opinion  in  Serbia  still  attributes  his  death  to  a  politi- 
cal assassination  by  poisoning.  The  body  was  given 
a  magnificent  burial  at  the  expense  of  the  Serbian 
government ;  the  entire  court,  led  by  the  King,  all  the 
political  parties  without  exception  and  immense 
crowds  followed  the  hearse.     His  death  was  the  cause 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  243 

of  national  mourning  in  Serbia  and  the  Serbian  peo- 
ple erected  a  superb  monument  to  him  by  subscrip- 
tion; and  an  avenue  in  Belgrade  was  given  his  name. 

Before  being  appointed  Minister  to  Sofia,  D.  K. 
Sementovsky-Kusilo  had  replaced  M.  Hartwig  as 
Director  of  the  First  Department  in  the  Ministry  of 
Foreign  Affairs.  Iswolsky  did  not  get  on  well  with 
him  and  sent  him  to  Bulgaria  in  order  to  get  rid  of 
him.  His  debut  at  Sofia  was  not  at  all  promising. 
Ferdinand,  knowing  Iswolsky 's  antipathy  towards 
Sementovsky,  hoped  to  find  in  the  latter  a  docile  in- 
strument. When  he  discovered  that  he  had  to  do 
with  a  strong  personality,  he  did  everything  possible 
to  force  his  recall — not  even  hesitating  to  enmesh 
Sementovsky 's  wife  in  an  intrigue  towards  that  end. 
But  to  give  Nicholas  II  his  due,  on  this  occasion  he 
did  not  consent  to  Sementovsky  being  recalled  but 
supported  him  strongly. 

Subtle  and  evasive  as  ever,  Ferdinand  promptly 
changed  his  policy  toward  the  Russian  Legation.  He 
offered  the  minister  and  his  wife  every  courtesy  al- 
ways in  the  hope  of  getting  the  Russian  minister  on 
his  side  of  the  fence ;  but  the  latter  continued  on  his 
own  lines,  thinking  only  of  the  good  of  his  country. 
Unfortunately,  Iswolsky  rarely  listened  to  his  advice. 
Sazonoff,  it  is  true,  esteemed  him  greatly,  but  such 
esteem  was  not  under  the  circumstances  of  much 
practical  value  unless  it  were  backed  with  diplomatic 
support. 


244     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

M.  Sementovsky  died  at  Sofia  of  appendicitis. 
Relatively  speaking  he  was  a  young  man  as  diplo- 
mats go,  being  only  forty-nine.  The  necessary 
operation  performed  by  a  very  famous  Viennese 
surgeon  was  a  complete  success,  but  he  was  after- 
wards attended  by  the  Czar  of  Bulgaria 's  own  phy- 
sician and  it  was  common  property  in  Belgrade  that 
his  death — like  that  of  Hartwig — was  due  to  assas- 
sination. 

Nicholas  II  had  bad  luck.  Almost  at  the  same  mo- 
ment he  lost  two  of  his  best  diplomats  and  the  men 
whom  Sazonoff  chose  to  replace  them  were  not  of  the 
same  calibre. 

A.  W.  NikludofT,  Councillor  of  the  Paris  Embassy, 
was  appointed  to  Sofia.  He  was  of  mediocre  intelli- 
gence and,  in  consequence,  not  in  the  least  fitted  to 
measure  wits  with  Ferdinand — past  master  in  all 
political  intrigue.  The  Czar  of  Bulgaria  did  not 
concern  himself  about  him  one  way  or  the  other; 
in  fact  whole  months  passed  by  without  his  being 
received. 

NikludofT,  therefore,  had  not  the  faintest  concep- 
tion of  the  real  situation  and  did  not  believe  there 
would  be  a  Balkan  War,  even  when  it  had  become 
inevitable.  He  amused  himself  by  studying  Bul- 
garian history  and  sent  the  results  of  his  studies  to 
our  Foreign  Office.  He  one  day  read  me  a  report  of 
his  on  King  Krum  of  Bulgaria,  who  lived  before 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  245 

Bulgaria  was  conquered  by  Turkey!!     (The  Turks 
made  their  entry  into  Europe  in  1453.) 

When  Sazonoff  himself  recognized  the  utter  im- 
possibility of  keeping  Nikludoff  any  longer  at  Sofia 
he  made  a  delightful  shuffle  to  replace  him.  As  A.  N. 
Savinsky  was  also  compromised  in  Sweden,  where 
he  was  our  Minister  at  that  time,  Sazonoff  simply 
made  them  exchange  posts. 

I  have  already  mentioned  Savinsky  in  connection 
with  Count  Lamsdorff.  The  ''means"  which  he  em- 
ployed to  advance  his  career  will  therefore  be  re- 
membered. At  Sofia  his  behaviour  caused  consider- 
able scandal.  The  Russian  Legation  became  the  cen- 
tre of  nightly  revels  and  was  known  as  a  veritable 
gambling  hell  by  night  while  by  day  the  Russian 
Minister  either  promenaded  the  streets  of  Sofia 
dressed  as  a  dandy,  or  made  motor  trips  outside  the 
city  limits.  It  is  said,  however,  that  he  foresaw  the 
alliance  of  Bulgaria  with  the  Central  Powers.  The 
truth  of  this  I  cannot  vouch  for,  but  in  any  case,  a 
man  with  a  past  such  as  Savinsky 's,  a  man  whom  the 
Emperor  himself  had  dubbed  "The  Countess  Lams- 
dorff,"  ought  not  to  have  been  included  on  the  list  of 
our  diplomats  in  foreign  countries. 

Of  the  diplomats  accredited  to  the  Russian  Court 
during  the  last  years  preceding  the  Revolution,  I 
knew  Sir  George  Buchanan,  the  British  Ambassador 
in  Petrograd,  when  I  was  stationed  at  our  Embassy 


246     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

in  Berlin  and  he  was  Councillor  of  the  British  Em- 
bassy there.  Buchanan  is  an  Englishman  in  every 
sense  of  the  word,  an  accomplished  gentleman  but 
cold  and  rather  reserved.  He  had  always  dreamed 
of  a  Russo-British  "rapprochement."  He  became 
very  popular  in  Russia  and  was  elected  an  Honor- 
ary Citizen  of  Moscow  and  a  Member  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  the  ancient  capital.  The  Russian  Liberals 
saw  in  him  a  support  to  their  aspirations. 

France  was  represented  at  Petrograd  by  M.  Paleo- 
logue,  who  had  not  had  much  experience  as  a  diplo- 
mat, having  had  only  one  post,  that  of  Minister  at 
Sofia.  At  Petrograd  M.  Paleologue  was  hardly  a 
success.  He  was  looked  upon  as  a  light  weight  and 
was  not  very  popular.  The  real  influence  of  our 
western  allies  was  concentrated  in  the  person  of  Sir 
George  Buchanan  and  consequently  England  was 
paramount  in  our  policies. 

Marquis  Carlotti,  the  Italian  Ambassador,  was  an 
accomplished  diplomat  of  the  Machiavellian  school. 
Astute,  clever,  he  managed  to  know  everything,  and 
was  ready  at  all  times  to  make  use  of  his  knowledge. 
He  did  well  for  Italian  nationalistic  claims,  forget- 
ting that  the  war  was  not  a  matter  of  one  nation  but 
of  nations.  None  of  our  ministers  or  the  foreign 
representatives  appeared  to  grasp  the  fundamentals 
of  German  policy  towards  the  Balkans.  Italy, 
through  her  representatives  in  Petrograd,  made  the 
same   error  as  Austria-Hungary.     Her  politicians 


THE  EVE  OF  REVOLUTION  247 

and  consequently  her  foreign  representatives  ignored 
and  antagonized  the  Serbians  and  Jugo-Slavs.  As 
will  be  obvious  before  the  war  is  ended  this  policy 
must  be  changed.  Carlotti  did  not  appreciate  criti- 
cism along  such  lines  and  did  his  best  to  prevent  it, 
thinking  he  best  served  his  country  in  that  manner. 

Since  the  Revolution  the  Marquis  Carlotti  has  been 
replaced  by  Marquis  de  la  Toretta,  a  very  clever  man 
and  a  great  friend  of  Russia  and  the  whole  Slavic 
world. 

The  Japanese  Ambassador,  Viscount  Motono,  later 
Japanese  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  came  to 
Petrograd  at  a  very  difficult  time  as  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War  had  hardly  ended.  But  gradually 
Viscount  Motono  by  his  affability  and  extreme  ability 
created  an  enviable  position,  not  only  for  himself, 
but  for  his  nation,  at  Petrograd.  He  belonged  to  the 
highest  society  and  was  as  welcome  in  financial  cir- 
cles as  among  the  lower  classes.  He  was  not  content 
with  living  only  in  Petrograd,  but  travelled  all  over 
our  vast  country  so  as  to  be  able  to  study  it  thor- 
oughly at  first  hand.  Belonging  to  Prince  Ito's 
school,  he  was  a  fervent  advocate  of  a  binding  alli- 
ance between  Japan  and  Russia.  Both  our  treaties 
with  Japan  (1907  and  1916)  owe  their  existence 
chiefly  to  him  as  their  author.  He  left  Petrograd 
with  nothing  but  the  best  of  wishes  and  kindest 
thoughts  on  the  part  of  us  all. 

I  have  endeavoured  to  describe  the  personalities 


248     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

of  our  own  ambassadors  and  ministers  as  well  as 
those  accredited  to  us,  in  order  to  give  an  exact  pic- 
ture of  the  circumstances  and  characters  which  de- 
cided our  foreign  policy  during  the  reign  of  Nicholas 
II.  The  vacillations  and  indeterminations  of  our 
policy  were  entirely  due  to  the  weak  character  of  our 
Sovereign,  which  made  our  foreign  ministry  a  ship 
without  sails  or  rudder.  This  fact  in  conjunction 
with  a  domestic  policy  which  was  wholly  reactionary 
and  absolutely  contrary  to  the  sentiments  of  the  ma- 
jority of  the  Russian  people,  was  to  lead  us  irrevoca- 
bly toward  a  revolution  which  was  to  engulf  the  Rus- 
sian monarchy  under  the  ruins  of  the  throne  of 
Nicholas  II. 


CHAPTER  XI 

GENESIS 

The  Origin  of  the  Russian  Revolution — The  Ministers,  the  Clergy, 

Absence  of  Justice,  Deprivations  of  Russian  Society. 

General  Dissatisfaction 

A  revolutionaey  movement  was  first  visible  in  Rus- 
sia in  1825,  when  Alexander  I  died.  The  mal-con- 
tents  took  advantage  of  the  abdication  of  Alexander's 
successor,  the  Grand  Duke  Constantin,  in  favour  of 
his  brother  Nicholas,  to  create  a  rising  among  the 
troops.  They  spread  the  report  that  the  abdication 
had  been  forced  by  undue  influence,  and  they  hoped 
to  create  a,  constitutional  government,  which  would 
replace  the  autocracy.  The  conspiracy  fell  through 
and  Nicholas  I  ascended  the  throne.  There  followed 
a  reactionary  reign  of  terror  in  Russia,  and  the 
flower  of  the  military  youth,  all  bearers  of  the  high- 
est names  in  Russia,  paid  for  their  daring  in  the 
awful  cold  and  snows  of  Siberia ! 

This  first  revolutionary  outbreak  had  not  an  anti- 
Czarist   character.    It  was  a  constitutional  move- 


ment.   A  few  regiments,  especially  of  the  Imperial 
Guard,  officered  by  men  who  belonged  to  the  aristoc- 

2  10 


250     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

racy  of  the  country,  supported  the  plot.  But  the 
people  ignored  it.  Even  the  soldiers  who  took  part 
in  it  understood  next  to  nothing  of  what  they  were 
fighting  for.  They  shouted  "Vive  Constantin  and 
the  Constitution"  believing  that  "Constitution"  was 
the  wife  of  Constantin ! ! 

During  the  reign  of  Nicholas  I  the  spirit  of  the 
revolution  and  many  of  the  men  who  inspired  it, 
spread  over  Europe.  The  famous  Hertzen,  the 
recognized  leader  of  the  movement,  established  him- 
self in  London,  founded  a  newspaper  office  there,  and 
beat  his  war  drums  against  the  Russian  autocracy, 
from  the  British  capital.  After  the  death  of 
Nicholas  I,  his  successor,  Alexander  II,  inaugurated 
an  era  of  reform.  In  1861  he  freed  the  serfs  (peas- 
ants) who  had  been  slaves  until  then.  He  abolished 
the  use  of  the  knout  in  the  army  and  established 
a  provincial  system  of  self-government,  the  Zemst- 
vos,  and  the  jury  system.  In  consequence  the  young 
Emperor  became  the  idol  of  his  people.  Hertzen 
wrote  to  him  from  London,  "You  have  conquered  me, 
Galilean!"  Unfortunately  this  almost  ideal  con- 
dition of  affairs  did  not  last  long!  It  was  plain  that 
the  reforms  instituted  by  the  Emperor  were  the  first 
steps  towards  abolishing  autocracy.  Russia  awaited 
a  constitution  which  would  crown  their  monarch's  ef- 
forts, but  the  Emperor  stopped  half  way.  Discon- 
tent followed,  and  the  Emperor — instead  of  continu- 
ing his  reforms — began  to  destroy  those  he  had  al- 


GENESIS  251 


ready  instituted.  In  a  very  short  time  the  whole 
nation  was  seething  with  revolutionary  propaganda. 
The  fanatics  instituted  a  system  of  terrorism,  minis- 
ters  and  provincial  governors  were  assassinated  in 
broad  daylight,  and  finally  Alexander  II,  one  of  the 
best  rulers  Russia  has  ever  had,  and  to  whom  the 
people  had  given  the  name  of  "Liberator  Czar," 
was  blown  to  pieces  by  a  bomb  in  one  of  the  avenues 
of  Petrograd  on  March  1st,  1881.  The  horror,  in- 
spired in  the  majority  of  the  Russian  people  by  the 
murder  of  their  sovereign,  greatly  helped  his  suc- 
cessor, Alexander  III,  to  institute  a  most  reactionary 
policy. 

There  were,  however,  some  further  outbreaks,  but 
these  were  suppressed  quite  easily  and  once  more 
the  centre  of  the  revolution  moved  elsewhere.  When 
Nicholas  II  ascended  the  throne  in  1894,  Russia  was 
still  waiting  for  a  serious  attempt  to  bring  about 
liberal  ref  onus.  It  was  greatly  hoped  that  Nicholas 
II  would  continue  the  work  of  the  first  years  of 
the  reign  of  his  grandfather,  which  was  stopped 
throughout  the  reign  of  Alexander  III.  But 
Nicholas  II  did  nothing.  He  apparently  decided  to 
continue  the  reactionary  regime  of  his  father.  He 
declared,  "I  wish  to  leave  the  country  to  my  son, 
even  as  I  received  it  from  my  father."  He  sur- 
rounded himself  with  ultrii-^iea^4iauaiw_ininisters. 
Count  Witte  was  probably  the  only  exception,  but 
even  he,  absorbed  by  financial  reforms,  held  aloof 


252     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

from  anything  concerning  the  internal  administra- 
tion. The  Zemstvos  were  badly  handicapped.  Jus- 
tice was  prostituted  to  the  Government's  general 
policy.  Discontent  was  general  and  it  was  stimu- 
lated by  revolutionary  propaganda,  which  was 
stirred  up  as  much  in  foreign  capitals  as  in  Eussia 
itself.  Revolution  was,  even  then,  in  the  air,  and 
only  a  favourable  moment  for  a  general  outbreak  was 
wanting.  That  moment  came  after  the  unfortunate 
war  with  Japan.  The  war  had  exposed  all  our  weak- 
nesses, and  the  rottenness  of  the  government  both 
civil  and  military.  The  national  pride  of  the  people 
had  been  deeply  wounded  and  the  army  was  dis- 
gusted and  sore. 

The  revolution  broke  out  in  Petrograd.  A  gen- 
eral strike  was  proclaimed,  tne  capital  was  plunged 
in  darkness,  deprived  of  water,  food  and  fuel.  Rail- 
way transportation  was  paralyzed.  Petrograd  was 
entirely  isolated  from  the  world.  The  Emperor 
Nicholas,  nearly  out  of  his  mind  with  fear,  issued  the 
famous  manifesto  of  October  17th,  1905,  which  gave 
to  his  people  a  kind  of  constitution.  National  repre- 
sentation through  the  Duma,  freedom  of  speech, 
liberty — of  the  individual,  of  conscience,  meetings, 
and  the  press  was  proclaimed,  and  Count  Witte  be- 
came President  of  the  reformed  Council  of  Ministers, 
which  took  the  place  of  the  old  Cabinet  of  Ministers 
of  the  days  of  autocracy.  But  the  revolutionary 
movement  sweeping  in  full  flood  from  Petrograd, 


GENESIS  253 

reached  Moscow.  Count  Witte,  to  dam  the  flood, 
wanted  to  try  persuasion.  But  the  Minister  of  the 
Interior,  A.  N.  Dournovo,  advised  the  Emperor  to  act 
more  firmly.  He  promised  to  throttle  the  revolution 
in  its  infancy,  and  the  Emperor  approving,  the  revo- 
lution in  Moscow  was  choked  in  blood !  Count  Witte 
promptly  resigned,  and  reaction  held  high  carnival 
all  over  Russia.  The  Duma  tried  to  stem  the  ebb 
tide,  but  was  dissolved  twice  and  twice  reconstituted 
by  fraudulent  elections.  Finally  it  was  forced  to 
capitulate. 

From  that  moment  the  government  went  from  bad 
to  worse.  Minister  succeeded  minister  as  water 
flows  over  a  fall.  The  Empress  came  actively  on  the 
scene  with  all  her  scabby  entourage,  and  the  Emperor 
was  only  the  shadow  of  a  sovereign.  At  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Great  War,  Nicholas  seemed  to  win  a  cer- 
tain degree  of  popularity.  At  that  critical  moment 
the  Russian  people  supported  their  Monarch,  and  in- 
ternal discussion  was  forgotten.  But  very  soon  seri- 
ous disasters  to  the  Russian  armies  threw  a  pitiless 
light  on  the  instability  of  the  Emperor  and  the  fatu- 
ity, weakness  and  corruption  of  the  bureaucracy. 
Violent  speeches  were  made  and  still  more  violent 
scenes  took  place  in  the  Duma.  The  Duma  de- 
manded direct  participation  in  public  affairs,  but  the 
Czar  continued  his  fatal  course.  Then,  for  the  first 
time,  the  trend  of  the  revolution  changed  from  the 
constitutional  road  it  had  followed  up  till  this  time 


254     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

and  became  openly  anti-Czarist.  Famine  in  Petro- 
grad,  deliberately  staged  by  an  imbecile  minister, 
finally  rung  the  curtain  down  on  the  drama  of  the 
Romanoffs  on  the  25th  of  February,  1917. 

In  order  to  understand  the  last  act  of  this  drama 
it  is  necessary  to  know  the  personalities  and  char- 
acteristics of  the  principal  actors  who  played  their 
part  in  it,  from  1905,  the  date  of  the  real  revolution, 
to  1917,  the  year  of  the  Emperor's  abdication.  The 
first  to  come  on  the  stage  was  Count  Witte,  President 
of  the  first  Council  of  Ministers  under  the  so-called 
Constitutional  Government.  Although  bearing  a 
German  name  he  was  a  thorough  Russian  by  birth 
and  sentiment.  He  was  a  self-made  man.  When 
he  was  thirty-one  he  was  still  a  station  master  on 
the  Western  Railroad  of  Russia.  He  offered  a  sug- 
gestion to  the  directors  which  doubled  the  receipts 
of  the  company  and  was  made  a  member  of  the  com- 
pany's executive.  T.  T.  Wichnegradsky,  then  Min- 
ister of  Finance,  noticed  Witte 's  work,  and  appointed 
him  Superintendent-in-Chief  of  the  Right  of  Way  of 
Russian  Railways.  About  a  year  later  he  was  ap- 
pointed Minister  of  Communications,  and  eleven 
months  later  succeeded  Wichnegradsky  as  Minister 
of  Finance.  At  that  time  he  was  barely  forty.  He 
was  a  man  of  quite  unusual  mentality,  endowed  with 
the  practical  imagination  of  a  statesman  who  turns 
dreams  into  facts,  ambitious,  emotional,  and  deter- 
mined.    No  obstacles  were  great  enough  to  deter  him 


GENESIS  255 

when  once  he  visualized  his  goal.  In  administering 
his  department  he  piled  reform  on  reform.  To  him 
Eussia  owed  the  introduction  of  gold  coinage  and 
the  monopoly  of  alcohol.  While  he  held  office  France 
lent  Russia  huge  sums  for  development  and  the  for- 
eign capitals  began  to  rain  money  into  our  com- 
mercial enterprises. 

The  aristocracy  regarded  Witte  as  a  parvenu. 
The  bureaucracy  envied  his  phenomenally  rapid 
rise.  They  combined  to  plot  his  fall.  But  Witte 
was  not  easily  caught.  He  scattered  his  enemies 
from  his  path,  beating  down  some  and  buying  others. 
He  bought  for  the  State,  for  double  its  value,  a  do- 
main of  Count  Worontzoff-Dachkoff,  Minister  of 
the  Court  during  the  reign  of  Alexander  III,  and  he 
appointed  Kokowtzoff  his  Assistant  Minister,  thus 
assuring  himself  of  the  vital  support  of  these  two 
statesmen.  Having^s"tudied  the  evil  side  of  human 
nature,  Witte  profoundly  suspected  and  feared  it. 
He  said  to  me  one  day,  "I  am  reproached  with  hav- 
ing corrupted  society  and  with  buying  my  people. 
I,  the  purchaser,  am  not  to  blame.  The  blame  rests 
with  a  society  so  rotten  that  it  permits  itself  to  be 
bought !  For  the  good  of  my  country  I  hesitate  at 
nothing. ' ' 

WThen  Nicholas  II  ascended  the  throne  Witte  was 
at  the  pinnacle  of  his  power.  As  Minister  of 
Finance,  his  influence  was  felt  in  every  other  depart- 
ment of  the  government.     He  made  the  same  mistake 


256     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

with  the  Emperor,  that  Bismarck  made  with  the 
Emperor  William.  He  treated  the  young  monarch 
as  a  school  boy.  It  is  said  that  at  times  he  was 
vulgar  and  rude  in  his  presence.  Whenever  the 
Emperor  attempted  to  contradict  him,  he  immedi- 
ately presented  his  resignation,  which  he  knew  very 
well  Nicholas  did  not  dare  accept.  But  when  he  fell 
he  gave  another  illustration  of  how  much  he  re- 
sembled Bismarck.  He,  like  the  famous  German, 
lacked  personal  dignity  in  his  disgrace.  He  criti- 
cized the  Emperor,  the  Government  and  especially 
his  successors,  and  began  to  cultivate  the  press,  as- 
siduously, behaving  like  a  caged  lion.  He  had  but 
one  fixed  idea,  to  regain  power! 

His  opportunity  came  at  the  conclusion  of  peace 
between  Russia  and  Japan.  In  the  weak  and  po- 
litically impoverished  ranks  of  our  diplomatic  serv- 
ice there  was  no  striking  personality,  who  by  his 
name  alone,  could  influence  our  adversary.  Public 
opinion  unanimously  pointed  to  Witte  as  being  the 
only  man  to  whom  the  nation  could  confide  its  in- 
terests at  so  serious  a  time.  Despite  his  personal 
antipathy  to  him,  Nicholas  appointed  Witte,  First 
Minister-Plenipotentiary  to  the  Portsmouth  Confer- 
ence. There  in  the  realm  of  foreign  affairs  which 
was  an  entirely  new  departure  for  him,  he  gave 
evidence  of  his  remarkable  abilities.  Public  opin- 
ion in  the  United  States  was  far  from  being  favour- 
able to  Russia  owing  to  her  treatment  of  the  Jews. 


GENESIS  257 

Japan  had  won  American  sympathy  and  financial 
support.  It  was  therefore  a  problem  of  extreme 
importance  to  change  the  American  viewpoint,  and 
Witte  gave  it  his  first  attention. 

The  Japanese  Plenipotentiaries  wished  first  of  all 
to  discuss  those  clauses  of  the  treaty  on  which  they 
were  determined  to  insist,  and  with  which  Russia 
could  only  comply  if  absolutely  forced  to  do  so. 
Witte,  however,  first  took  up  the  less  important 
clauses  which  were  more  or  less  acceptable  to  Russia. 
In  this  way  the  American  public  began  to  think  that 
Russia  was  ready  to  make  any  sacrifices  in  order 
to  ensure  the  peace  which  the  Americans  ardently 
desired  to  see  signed.  Russia  was  thus  fast  regain- 
ing American  sympathy  when  the  time  came  to  dis- 
cuss those  clauses  to  which  Russia  refused  to  con- 
sent, such  for  instance  as  a  heavy  indemnity. 
Witte 's  ground  was  already  prepared.  Public 
opinion  began  to  accuse  Japan  of  obstinacy  and  a 
desire  to  thwart  peace.  It  was  believed  that  if  Rus- 
sia was  willing  to  give  way  on  the  first  points,  Japan 
might  do  as  much  for  the  remainder.  In  view  of 
this,  and  not  wishing  to  antagonize  American  opin- 
ion, the  Japanese  plenipotentiaries  gave  way.  The 
Treaty  of  Portsmouth  was  not  a  very  bad  one  for 
Russia!" 

Witte  returned  in  great  triumph  to  Russia.  Em- 
peror William  made  a  point  of  meeting  him  as  he 
passed  through  Berlin  on  his  way  to  Petrograd. 


258     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

The  German  Emperor  felt  that  Witte's  star  would 
again  be  in  the  ascendant,  and  he  wished  to  win 
such  a  proven  statesman  and  diplomat  over  to  his 
own  interests. 

Witte  has  often  been  accused  of  being  German- 
ophile.    Witte  was  not  Germanophile,  Francophile 
or  Anglophile,  he  was  Russophile!     The   German 
Emperor,  for  all  his  attentions,  was  very  far  from 
having  any  personal  sympathy  with  Witte.    As  a 
matter  of  fact,  during  the  last  years  of  Alexander 
III  and  the  first  years  of  Nicholas  II,  when  Witte  was 
omnipotent,  the  Emperor  William  had  been  very 
afraid  of  him.     He  had  learnt  that  here  was  a  Eus- 
sian  statesman  who  could  not  be  bullied  by  Germany. 
For  example,  the  German  Government,  wanting  to 
bring  economic  pressure  to  bear  on  Russia,  prohib- 
ited the  importation  of  Russian  geese  into  Germany. 
Witte  countered  at  once  by  an  economic  war  and  be- 
gan by  prohibiting  the  importation  of  a  series  of 
articles  of  German  manufacture  which  made  a  hole 
in   the    German    budget    of   more    than    18,000,000 
roubles. 

When  Witte  fell  from  power  the  first  time  the 
German  Emperor  was  greatly  pleased.  After  the 
treaty  of  Portsmouth  William  believed  he  had  won 
Witte  to  his  point  of  view,  but  when  he  realized  that 
this  was  not  the  case,  he  detested  him  more  than  ever 
and  the  news  of  Witte's  second  downfall  was  greeted 
at  Berlin  with  much  joy. 


GENESIS  259 

Witte's  whole  policy,  as  he  detailed  it  more  than 
once  to  me  after  his  fall,  was:  " Russia  must  pur- 
sue a  peaceful  policy  in  order  to  increase  her  econo- 
mic well  being.  We  can  get  on  perfectly  well  with 
Germany  by  recognizing  her  rightful  interests,  and 
forcing  her  to  respect  ours.  If  William  should  be- 
come arrogant,  we  can  make  him  lower  his  flag  by 
means  of  our  understanding  with  France.  We  must 
follow  the  same  policy  where  England  is  concerned. 
As  against  her  we  can  always  count  on  having  Ger- 
many at  our  disposal.  The  antagonism  which  ex- 
ists between  Germany  and  England  is  our  trump 
card.  Iswolsky  made  a  grave  mistake  by  bringing 
about  the  British  understanding  and  Sazonoff  was 
still  more  wrong  in  permitting  himself  to  be  guided 
by  that  alliance.  No  good  can  come  of  it  for  Rus- 
sia. We  are  not  in  a  fit  state  for  a  war  with  Ger- 
many. Such  a  war,  to  succeed,  must  have  a  wholly 
national  character.  In  order  for  a  war  to  be  na- 
tional, we  must  have  a  popular  sovereign.  Nicholas 
II  is  not  popular  and  therein  lies  the  very  gravesT 
danger.  A  second  unfortunate  war  for  us  might 
easily  be  the  prelude  to  a  revolution." 

Such  a  political  "credo"  can  hardly  be  called 
Germanophile  in  sentiment.  It  is  that  of  a  states- 
man with  big  ideas  and  a  very  wide  outlook.  I  was 
very  intimate  with  Witte,  and  saw  him  at  least  twice 
a  week  and  there  was  rarely  a  day  when  we  did 
not  speak  by  telephone.     I   think,   therefore,   that 


260     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

probably  I  knew  him  better  than  most  people  and 
could  appreciate  his  fine  qualities  and  realize  his 
great  faults.  It  was  nothing  but  his  desire  to  re- 
gain power  at  any  price  which  alienated  public 
opinion.  He  flattered  the  Imperial  Court  and  as- 
siduously cultivated  the  Grand  Dukes  and  states- 
men who  found  favour  in  the  eyes  of  the  Sovereign. 
He  was  an  habitue  of  the  aristocratic  salons,  and  it 
is  said  did  not  even  disdain  Rasputin.  It  was  in  this 
way  he  alienated  the  Liberals.  On  the  other  hand 
he  carefully  cultivated  the  press  and  sought  the 
friendship  and  esteem  of  the  Duma,  and  so  alien- 
ated the  Court  and  high  bureaucracy.  When  he 
died  (1915)  he  had  been  for  a  long  time  without 
any  political  support  whatsoever,  and  with  only 
a  very  few  intimate  friends.  And  yet,  during  the 
last  years  of  his  life,  when  he  mounted  the  tribune 
of  the  Council  of  State,  every  one  present  listened 
to  him  with  serious  attention. 

Only  a  few  years  before  his  death  Witte  miracu- 
ously  escaped  an  attempt  against  his  life.  An  in- 
fernal machine  had  been  placed  in  the  chimney  of 
his  study  which  was  fortunately  noticed  by  his  serv- 
ant who  was  about  to  light  a  fire.  A  judicial  in- 
vestigation followed.  It  was  established  that  the 
conspiracy  had  been  hatched  by  the  party  of  Ex- 
treme Reaction,  (Black  Bands).  Despite  the  in- 
sistence of  Witte,  the  matter  was  hushed  up.  More 
than  that,  when  the  Count  at  his  wife's  insistence, 


GENESIS  261 

asked  for  a  detective  to  protect  him  in  future,  the 
police  chose  a  man  for  the  position  who  belonged 
to  the  Black  Bands,  and  who  shortly  afterwards 
was  found  assassinated  by  order  of  the  revolution- 
ary committee  as  an  admitted  spy.  Witte  told  me 
that  the  so-called  guardian  of  his  person  was  neither 
more  nor  less  than  another  assassin  sent  by  his 
enemies!  Such  were  the  means  used  by  the  Black 
Band  when  it  tried  to  get  rid  of  its  opponents. 

Witte 's  many  enemies  whispered  to  Nicholas  II 
that  the  retired  statesman  was  aiming  at  becoming 
president  of  a  Russian  Republic.  It  was  an  infam- 
ous lie.  Witte  was  a  thorough  Czarist,  but  he  desired 
that  Czarism  should  be  supported  by  a  more  or  less 
Liberal  Constitution.  He  was  very  proud  of  the 
Imperial  Manifesto  of  the  17th  October.  He  said  to 
me,  ''Nicholas  may  detest  me  as  much  as  he  likes, 
but  he  will  never  be  able  to  destroy  the  letter  he 
wrote  to  me  when  the  Manifesto  was  issued!  I  in- 
sisted that  his  letter  should  be  published  at  the  same 
time  as  the  Manifesto,  and  I  have  ordered  it  to  be  en- 
graved on  my  tombstone !  The  Russian  people  will 
at  last  know  the  part  I  played  at  that  time!" 

Such  was  the  man,  Nicholas  II  dismissed  on  two 
occasions  as  he  would  a  valet !  I  do  not  believe  that 
during  the  last  half  century  Russia  has  had  a  states- 
man his  equal. 

Ivan  Loguinovitch  Goremikine,— ^wijo  succeeded 
Witte  as  President  of  the  Council  of  Ministers,  was 


262     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  complete  antithesis  of  his  predecessor.  He 
was  an  aristocrat  whose  family  had  always  played 
some  part  in  the  history  of  Russia  since  the  days 
of  Ivan  the  Terrible.  He  had  had  a  long  bureau- 
cratic career  and  had  held  among  other  offices  that  of 
the  Ministry  of  the  Interior.  It  would  be  unjust  to 
call  him  a  reactionary.  He  approached  more  nearly 
to  the  type  of  the  English  Tory.  He  instinctively 
regarded  administration  as  government  by  law.  If 
the  law  was  bad  then  it  could  be  changed  but  as 
long  as  the  law  was  on  the  statute  books  it  must  be 
obeyed  absolutely.     One  day  he  said  to  me: 

"When  I  was  Minister  of  the  Interior  the  general 
opinion  was  that  I  was  a  Liberal.  I  was  given  the 
name  of  the  Red  Flag  Minister.  Yet  in  1906  when 
I  was  President  of  the  Council  for  the  first  time, 
everybody  thought  me  a  reactionary.  I  am  neither 
a  reactionary  nor  a  radical.  I  am  a  man  who  stands 
by  the  law." 

Such  sentiments  were  a  serious  fault  in  any  min- 
ister who  desired  to  succeed  during  such  times.  A 
law  which  served  in  the  Russia  of  1900  could  not 
serve  the  needs  of  1906.  Russia  was  suffering  the 
birth-pangs  of  a  new  era.  Her  doctors  diagnosed 
her  case  as  the  bad  temper  of  a  child. 

Goremikine  was  very  badly  received  by  the  Duma, 
which  desired  above  all  to  emphasize  its  independ- 
ence. Directly  he  attempted  to  speak,  cat  calls  and 
shrill   whistles    resounded    everywhere.     The    Em- 


GENESIS  263 

peror  had  two  courses  open  to  him.  He  could  dis- 
solve the  Duma  or  he  could  form  a  constitutional 
ministry  with  its  assistance.  The  Democratic  Con- 
stitutional Party,  (Cadets)  was  so  sure  of  obtain- 
ing power  that  a  list  of  ministers  was  made  out, 
in  which  appeared  the  name  of  Milioukoff  as  Premier 
and  Foreign  Minister.  The  Emperor,  hearing  of 
this,  summoned  the  Council  of  State  to  discuss  the 
situation.  The  majority  of  the  Council  pronounced 
in  favour  of  a  constitutional  government.  Gore- 
mikine  and  Stolypin,  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  in 
his  cabinet,  urged  dissolution.  When  the  Council 
was  dismissed  the  Emperor  requested  Goremikine 
to  wait  and  then  expressed  to  him  his  chagrin 
with  the  sentiments  expressed  by  the  majority.  He 
asked  Goremikine  what  could  be  done.  The  latter 
replied : 

"I  do  not  change  my  opinion.  The  present  con- 
stitution gives  you  the  right  to  decide  whether  you 
will  dissolve  the  Duma  or  accede  to  the  sentiment 
of  the  majority.  You  are  the  master  and  must 
make  your  choice.  The  Duma  has  entirely  over- 
stepped its  rights  and  must  be  put  in  its  place." 

The  Emperor  bowed  his  head  in  his  hands  and 
stood  thus  for  some  minutes  in  deep  reflection.  He 
then  went  slowly  up  to  Goremikine.  Making  the 
sign  of  the  cross  he  exclaimed: 

"In  God's  name  dissolve  the  Duma,  I  entirely 
agree  with  your  point  of  view." 


264     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

After  his  interview  with  the  Emperor,  Goremi- 
kine  drafted  the  proclamation  dissolving  the  Duma 
and  went  direct  to  the  state  printer  and  ordered  it 
to  be  printed  and  immediately  issued.  He  found 
there  a  proclamation  of  the  Cadet  Party  to  the  peo- 
ple anticipating  the  formation  of  a  really  constitu- 
tional cabinet  by  the  Emperor.  He  personally  con- 
fiscated the  proofs  and  took  them  to  his  house  in 
his  carriage.  One  of  his  most  striking  qualities 
was  his  calmness  at  critical  times.  He  was  not  in 
the  least  disturbed  though  of  course  he  realized  the 
gravity  of  the  situation.  He  dined  with  his  family 
quietly  and  afterwards  smoked  and  played  solitaire 
as  usual,  without  showing  any  signs  of  perturbation. 
He  then  retired.  At  half  past  eleven  a  special 
courier  came  from  the  Emperor  with  a  message  to 
the  effect  that  Nicholas  had  changed  his  mind.  He 
desired  the  minister  to  cancel  the  proclamation  of 
dissolution  and  requested  him  to  come  to  Tsarskoe 
Seloe  the  next  day  at  eleven  in  the  morning. 

Goremikine  sent  his  valet  to  the  courier  with  a 
message  that  the  Minister  was  not  well  and  was 
asleep  but  that  the  message  would  be  delivered 
when  he  awoke.  But  Goremikine  carefully  did  noth- 
ing and  next  day  to  the  Emperor's  stupefaction 
there  appeared  the  decree  of  dissolution.  The  Min- 
ister went  to  Tsarskoe  Seloe  as  requested  and  told 
the  Emperor  he  regretted  the  mistake  and  blamed 
his  valet  who  had  not  desired  to  awaken  him.     He 


GENESIS  265 

then  presented  his  resignation  which  the  Emperor 
refused  to  accept. 

Demonstrations  against  the  Government  were  pre- 
pared for.  But  the  public  in  general  was  tired  of 
revolutionary  disorders  and  almost  welcomed  the 
dissolution  of  the  Duma.  The  members  of  the  Cadet 
Party  fled  to  Viborg  in  Finland  and  from  there  is- 
sued their  proclamation  to  the  people.  It  fell  ab- 
solutely flat. 

Goremikine  however  was  obdurate.  He  again  pre- 
sented his  resignation  telling  the  Emperor  that  any 
opprobrium  for  the  dissolution  which  might  come 
later  ought  to  fall  on  him,  who  was  really  to  blame, 
and  insisted  that  his  resignation  be  accepted.  The 
Emperor  finally  gave  way  and  at  Goremikine 's  re- 
quest appointed  Stolypin  to  succeed  him.  Knowing 
Stolypin's  character  it  always  seemed  to  me  in  think- 
ing this  matter  over  that  Goremikine  had  a  grim 
sense  of  humour. 

The  new  President  of  the  Council  before  serving 
as  Minister  of  the  Interior  had  been  governor  of 
Saratorr*  on  the  Volga.  He  was  relatively  a  young 
man  about  forty-five,  very  ambitious,  astute,  de- 
termined, but  inclined  to  be  narrow  minded  and 
provincial.  His  critics  nicknamed  him  "The  Gov- 
ernor of  All  the  Russias."  He  ruled  Russia  as  if  it 
were  Saratoff.  As  President  of  the  Council  he  pur- 
sued an  ultra  nationalistic  policy  and  this  naturally 
led  to  the  further  estrangement  of  the  Poles  and 


266     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Finns.  He  was  supported  in  this  policy  by  the  No- 
voie  Vremya  of  which  his  brother  was  a  director. 

When  he  discovered  that  there  was  no  outburst 
of  sympathy  and  apparently  no  regret  for  the  de- 
parted Duma,  he  was  anxious  to  appropriate  all  the 
credit  for  the  dissolution  and  openly  boasted  of  his 
success  in  preventing  "stupid  constitutional  re- 
forms." He  was  to  receive  a  lesson  on  the  folly  of 
vanity. 

Meanwhile  Goremikine,  the  real  author  of  the 
Duma's  downfall,  was  staying  with  me  at  my  villa 
at  Tergensee  and  together  we  visited  Paris,  Goremi- 
kine enjoying  his  freedom  from  office  and  state 
affairs  with  all  the  abandonment  of  youth.  He  was 
intensely  amused  when  he  heard  that  Stolypin  was 
appropriating  a  responsibility  which  he  himself  had 
felt  to  be  most  serious  and  from  which  he  was  only 
too  anxious  to  escape.  His  amusement,  however, 
was  changed  to  regret  when  we  heard  that  Stolypin 's 
residence  in  Petrograd  had  been  destroyed  by  a  bomb 
and  that  Stolypin  himself  only  escaped  death  by  a 
miracle,  as  he  fell  from  the  second  floor  to  the  ground 
floor  yet  only  received  some  bruises  and  scratches. 
Twenty  people  were  killed  and  wounded  and  the 
Minister's  children  were  badly  hurt. 

Stolypin 's  first  act  was  to  arrange  for  elections 
to  the  Duma.  He  was  determined  that  the  new 
Duma  should  not  be  impregnated  with  the  radical- 
ism of  the  Cadets  and  relied  on  the  Peasants,  Cler- 


GENESIS  267 

icals  and  Conservatives  to  give  that  support  to  the 
Government,  which  was  so  plainly  lacking  in  the 
first  Duma.  He  succeeded  in  attaining  his  object  as 
far  as  the  arrangement  of  the  parties  was  concerned, 
but  he  soon  discovered  that  he  had  over-reached 
himself.  The  Peasants  and  Clericals  turned  out 
to  be  infinitely  more  revolutionary  than  the  Cadets 
and  a  socialist  plot  against  the  Czar  in  the  Duma 
itself,  was  nipped  in  the  bud.  Stolypin  thereupon 
dissolved  the  Second  Duma  and  the  Socialistic  mem- 
bers concerned  in  the  plot  were  brought  before  a 
judge  and  banished  to  Siberia.  Among  them  was 
Tseretelli,  who  after  the  Revolution  became  a  cab- 
inet minister  in  Kerensky's  government. 

By  the  use  of  even  more  unscrupulous  methods  in 
the  elections  the  Third  Duma  proved  a  docile  instru- 
ment in  the  hands  of  the  Minister.     The  majority 
wras  in  the  hands  of  a  new  party,  the  Octobrist, 
which  was  constitutional  but  not  so  advanced  as  the 
Cadets.     But  Stolypin  was  even  now  not  content. 
He  wanted  more  and  more  power  and  even  the  mild 
criticism  of  the  Octobrists  spurred  him  to  reaction. 
He  formed  a  party,  which  was  called  Nationalist, 
and  through  this  party  instituted  a  new  reactionary 
campaign  against  the  Jews,  Finns,  and  Poles.     In 
this  policy  he  was  violently  supported  by  the  Novoie 
Vremya,  which  during  this  entire  period  earned  for 
itself  a  bad  reputation.     It  always  supported  the 
power  "in  being"  whether  good  or  bad  and  had  no 


268     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

principles  outside  this  policy.  One  of  the  greatest 
Eussian  satirists,  Soltikoff,  (Tchedrine),  gave  the 
paper  the  name  of  '  *  What-you-Will. " 

In  consequence  extreme  discontent  arose  through- 
out Russia.  The  Jews,  Finns  and  Poles  combined 
with  the  intellectuals  against  Stolypin.  Opposition 
only  seemed  to  make  him  more  determined.  He  be- 
came more  and  more  reactionary  and  unscrupulous 
in  his  use  of  authority  to  suppress  any  opposition, 
although  in  the  Duma  he  still  kept  his  ascendancy 
owing  to  his  magnificent  oratory  and  appearance. 
But  the  more  he  stamped  on  the  embers  of  revolu- 
tion in  one  place,  the  more  he  used  the  weapons  of 
reaction  and  encouraged  the  Black  Bands,  the 
stronger  grew  the  sentiment  against  him  and  his 
government.  Finally  he  was  assassinated  by  a  Jew 
named  Bagroff,  in  the  presence  of  the  Emperor  and 
Empress  at  a  gala  performance  in  the  theatre  of 
Kiev. 

Had  he  escaped  the  assassin's  shot,  his  political 
assassination  was  certain.  He  had  already  been  con- 
demned by  the  Emperor  who  had  been  persuaded 
by  Stolypin 's  enemies  that  the  Minister  was  lead- 
ing Russia  on  the  road  to  ruin.  His  resignation 
was  only  a  matter  of  days.  His  assassin  after- 
wards declared  that  his  real  intent  had  been  to  kill 
the  Emperor,  and  that  it  was  only  at  the  last  moment 
he  had  decided  to  murder  the  Premier  instead! 
Thus  Stolypin  died,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  for  his  sov- 


GENESIS  269 

ereign!  But  despite  this  the  Emperor  did  not  at- 
tend the  funeral  of  his  Minister,  giving  as  his  ex- 
cuse that  on  that  day  he  had  promised  to  review  the 
main  body  of  troops  just  outside  the  city. 

This  pretence  again  shows  the  character  of  the 
Emperor !  The  ingratitude  of  Nicholas  equalled  his 
vacillation. 

A  monument  was  erected  to  Stolypin  at  Kiev  but 
it  was  destroyed  in  the  final  revolution. 

"While  he  had  been  in  power,  Stolypin  was  forced 
to  accept  as  Minister  of  Finance,  Count  Kokowtzoff, 
a  strong  political  adversary.  The  Emperor  insisted 
upon  this  appointment,  faithful  to  his  principle, 
divide  et  impera.  Kokowtzoff  now  succeeded  to  the 
presidency  of  the  Council. 

This  statesman  had  had  a  long  bureaucratic  ca- 
reer. Born  of  an  impoverished  family  of  the  lesser 
nobility,  he  owed  his  success  to  his  own  zeal  and  in- 
telligence, though  perhaps  more  especially  to  his 
intimate  knowledge  of  finance.  As  has  been  already 
stated,  for  a  time  he  had  been  an  antagonist  of  Count 
Witte,  but  the  latter  bought  his  assistance  by  ap- 
pointing him  Vice-Minister  of  Finance,  and  Kokowtz- 
off became  one  of  his  principal  collaborators  and  as- 
sistants in  all  his  projects. 

Later  Kokowtzoff  became  Minister  of  Finance,  and 
held  the  position  for  ten  years.  Although  he  was 
most  intelligent,  he  was  very  narrow  minded.  The 
wide  horizons  which  mark  the  great  statesman  were 


270     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

absolutely  lacking  in  him.  A  remarkable  "Budget- 
ist,"  all  his  efforts  were  bent  on  increasing  the 
wealth  of  the  state.  He  wrangled  over  every 
penny  of  credits  which  other  ministers  requested, 
and  naturally  the  State  suffered.  A  wit  once  com- 
pared him  to  a  certain  beggar  in  Montmartre,  one 
of  the  poorest  quarters  in  Paris,  who  starved  to 
death  in  his  attic  and  in  whose  mattress  15,000  francs 
were  found  after  his  death. 

Kokowtzoff  was  a  great  orator.  He  could  speak 
for  hours  together  on  any  subject,  and  was  always 
an  enthusiastic  admirer  of  his  own  verbosity. 
Witte,  with  whom  he  had  quarrelled  a  second  time, 
called  him  "a  lark." 

"He  is  a  bird  that  sings  very  well,  but  otherwise 
is  not  worth  much,"  he  said. 

Kokowtzoff  did  not  lack  character.  For  instance 
when  Witte  sent  him  to  Paris,  after  the  Russo- 
Japanese  War,  to  arrange  for  a  loan,  he  succeeded 
despite  the  opposition  of  Clemenceau,  the  then  pow- 
erful Minister  of  Interior  of  the  French  Government. 
Meeting  with  such  opposition  Kokowtzoff  did  not 
hesitate  to  threaten  Clemenceau  with  the  fact  that 
if  the  projected  loan  were  refused  by  France  he 
would  declare  Russia  bankrupt! 

Clemenceau  said  to  me:  "Your  Kokowtzoff  is 
not  a  minister!  He  is  a  blackmailer  of  the  first 
water!"    But  he  agreed  to  the  loan! 

In  his  relations  with  the  Duma,  Kokowtzoff  tried 


GENESIS  271 

to  be  as  conciliatory  as  possible,  but  his  efforts  were 
not  often  crowned  with  success.  He  had  no  party 
on  which  he  could  effectively  rely.  Towards 
the  end  of  his  tenure  of  office  he  staged  an 
excellent  burlesque.  He  had  entirely  stopped  ap- 
pearing in  the  Duma,  and  ordered  all  the  other  Min- 
isters to  do  the  same!  It  was  a  sort  of  strike  of 
the  Ministers  against  the  Duma. 

Kokowtzoff's  greatest  quality  was  his  unimpeach- 
able honesty,  which  he  maintained  in  his  private 
affairs  as  well  as  in  matters  of  state.  In  this  re- 
spect he  distinguished  himself  as  being  far  above 
the  Russian  statesmen  of  the  last  years  of  the 
Monarchy.  He  had  flatly  refused  to  meet  the  Court 
favourite,  Rasputin,  and  the  latter  avenged  himself 
by  becoming  one  of  the  prime  movers  in  his  down- 
fall. From  his  father  he  had  inherited  a  small 
property  not  far  from  Petrograd.  When  he  re- 
signed, this  little  property  was  all  that  he  possessed 
in  the  world. 

In  dismissing  him,  the  Emperor  offered  him  a 
gift  of  300,000  roubles,  but  Kokowtzoff  refused  it, 
saying  to  the  Emperor  that  his  appointment  as  a 
member  of  the  Council  of  the  Empire  amply  sufficed 
for  his  modest  tastes  and  needs. 

Instead  of  appreciating  this  rare  quality  in  a  Rus- 
sian statesman,  Nicholas  was  seemingly  much  an- 
noyed by  it.  After  his  retirement,  the  Sovereign 
always  avoided  seeing  Kokowtzoff  and  the  only  time 


272     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

that  he  did  receive  him  was  because  it  could  not  be 
avoided. 

While  he  was  in  power,  Kokowtzoff  had  not  fore- 
seen the  revolution.  He  continued  to  hope  that  by 
concessions  to  the  Duma  the  existing  state  of  things 
could  be  made  to  last,  at  least  until  the  end  of  the 
Great  War.  He  changed  his  mind  after  his  resig- 
nation, however.  Having  re-entered  private  life  he 
naturally  came  in  contact  with  all  kinds  and  condi- 
tions of  people.  He  was  frankly  spoken  to  by  all 
sides  and  thus  obtained  a  far  better  idea  of  Rus- 
sian sentiment  in  general. 

I  knew  Kokowtzoff  when  I  was  a  young  man  and 
had  always  been  very  intimate  with  him.  For  a 
certain  time  while  he  was  in  power  our  relations 
were  troubled,  for  my  newspaper  opposed  him. 
After  his  resignation,  however,  we  returned  to  the 
old  friendly  basis,  and  I  saw  him  very  often. 

He  was  always  very  sad  and  quiet  and  did  not  hide 
from  me  that  he  felt  the  Court  had,  on  his  advice, 
followed  a  fatal  policy.  He  then  foresaw  the  revolu- 
tion clearly,  and  said,  too,  that  it  was  not  far  dis- 
tant— even  that  it  would  take  place  before  the  war 
was  over.     Of  Nicholas  he  remarked : 

'  'The  Emperor  obstinately  refuses  to  see  any- 
thing, or  permit  himself  to  be  shown  anything.  He 
seems  as  if  he  were  still  drunk  with  the  ovations  he 
received  at  the  time  of  the  fetes  of  the  300th  Anni- 
versary of  the  Romanoff  dynasty.    He  does  not  hear 


GENESIS  273 

the  grumbling  of  the  coming  revolution  because  of 
the  cheers  of  the  multitude.  If  he  insists  upon  sur- 
rounding himself  with  such  indolent  ministers  as 
Goremikine  and  with  such  scamps  as  Sturmer  and 
Easputin,  the  end  is  near  at  hand." 

Unfortunately  Kokowtzoff  did  not  impart  his  opin- 
ions to  any  but  his  most  intimate  friends.  He  did 
not  act,  neither  did  he  try  to  influence  the  Court. 
When  the  Emperor  learned  by  accident  of  his  point 
of  view  and  appeared  interested  in  it,  he  was  slily 
informed  that  Kokowtzoff  still  rankled  over  his  dis- 
missal from  office  and  that  therein  might  be  found 
the  real  key  to  his  ideas  and  actions. 

His  well  known  honesty  saved  Count  Kokowtzoff 
at  the  time  of  the  Revolution.  He  was  not  even  ar- 
rested as  were  most  of  the  ministers  of  the  old  re- 
gime. 

To  the  stupefaction  of  all  political  circles  Goremi- 
kine was  appointed  successor  to  Kokowtzoff.  Gore- 
mikine was  seventy-seven  years  old,  and  had  the  gen- 
eral reputation  of  a  reactionary.  By  his  nomina- 
tion it  seemed  plain  that  the  Emperor  intended,  if 
possible,  to  pursue  a  still  more  autocratic  policy. 
The  Emperor  gave  immediate  proof  of  this  when 
he  summoned  a  council  of  the  ministers  over  which 
he  himself  presided.  At  this  conference  he  told  the 
Council  that  it  must  look  to  Goremikine  for  every- 
thing as  he  had  the  utmost  confidence  in  him  and  was 
determined  to  support  him  in  every  way  possible. 


274     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Goremikine,  immediately  after  the  council,  requested 
the  members  of  the  press  to  wait  upon  him  and 
told  them  that  he  was  determined  to  follow  a  policy 
which  would  have  the  approval  of  the  Duma,  if  the 
Duma  in  its  turn  gave  him  the  necessary  support. 
To  do  this,  however,  he  must  have  time  as  circum- 
stances were  such  as  to  make  it  most  difficult  to 
bring  about  such  reforms  as  the  Duma  demanded 
without  running  the  risk  of  destroying  the  fabric  of 
the  Russian  government.  The  Duma  received  this 
declaration  without  enthusiasm  but  in  a  not  un- 
friendly spirit.  Goremikine  was  somewhat  encour- 
aged thereby  as  it  was  a  very  different  reception 
from  that  which  he  had  experienced  the  first  tiwe  he 
had  been  President  of  the  Cabinet. 

Goremikine  intimated  that  he  would  dismiss 
Soukhomlinoff,  the  Minister  of  War,  Maklakoff,  the 
Minister  of  the  Interior  and  Tcheglowitoff,  the  Min- 
ister of  Justice,  all  of  whom  were  very  much  dis- 
liked by  the  Duma  and  Liberal  circles  in  Russia. 
Unfortunately  Goremikine  was  an  extreme  procras- 
tinator.  He  always  put  off  till  tomorrow  the  things 
he  should  have  done  today.  His  characteristic  in- 
dolence had  increased  with  his  years,  and  all  three 
ministers  remained  in  office  despite  his  seeming 
promise  to  purge  Russia  of  their  disastrous  influ- 
ence. One  evening  I  was  dining  en  famille  with 
Goremikine  and  strongly  criticized  the  policy  of  the 
three  ministers,  especially  that  of  Soukhomlinoff. 


GENESIS  275 

Goremikine  said  nothing  at  the  moment,  but  after- 
wards, just  as  I  was  going  home,  he  said : 

"You  are  quite  right,  my  dear  friend,  but  have 
patience.  You  must  not  forget  it  is  necessary  to 
manage  the  Emperor." 

I  replied:  "Take  care,  Ivan  Loganovitch,  that 
when  you  think  the  time  is  ripe  to  manage  the  Em- 
peror you  do  not  find  that  he  is  no  longer  the  Em- 
peror." 

Goremikine  answered  sadly:  "I  know, — I  know 
what  you  mean,  but  you  know  my  sentiments  regard- 
ing him.  I  have  too  much  affection  for  him.  I  have 
known  him  too  long. ' ' 

In  these  words  Goremikine  summed  up  a  situation 
I  knew  only  too  well.  Witte  had  said  to  me  on  one 
occasion  that  Goremikine  was  nothing  but  "a  maitre 
d 'hotel"  to  the  Emperor.  But  this  was  not  true. 
The  old  statesman  regarded  his  master  with  the  af- 
fection a  man  may  feel  towards  a  youth  who  has 
been  his  pupil.  He  knew  and  deplored  the  weak- 
nesses of  the  Emperor  but  he  could  not  find  it  in  his 
heart  to  deal  drastically  with  him.  He  spoilt  him, 
always  hoping  that  in  time  the  good  qualities  he 
saw  in  his  pupil  would  overcome  the  weakness  of 
his  character.  One  day  he  severely  criticized  the 
Emperor  to  my  sister,  especially  with  regard  to  his 
folly  regarding  Rasputin ;  he  said : 

"The  Emperor  knows  my  affection  for  him  and 
yet  he  treats  me  as  if  I  were  his  valet  de  chambre." 


276     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

My  sister  replied:  "Yes,  but  if  the  Emperor 
recalls  you,  you  will  go  to  him  just  as  a  dog  to  the 
whistle  of  his  master. ' ' 

Goremikine  answered:  "You  are  right,  but  what 
can  I  do?  I  love  him  and  I  can  refuse  him  noth- 
ing." 

It  was  clear  that  this  sentiment  of  Goremikine, 
combined  with  his  indolence  and  age,  would  create  an 
impossible  situation.  It  became  no  longer  a  ques- 
tion of  reform,  but  of  expediency — that  fatal  weak- 
ness in  all  politics  and  diplomacy.  The  ministers 
did  as  they  pleased  in  their  departments  and  the 
cabinet  was  not  united  on  any  definite  policy,  and 
when  in  due  course,  Goremikine  was  told  that  min- 
isters were  blundering  he  took  refuge  in  ignorance. 
"I  do  not  know  what  they  do,"  he  would  cry.  He 
forgot  he  was  intrusted  with  full  powers.  He  was 
like  a  stage  manager  who  refuses  to  be  responsible 
for  the  interpretation  of  their  parts  by  the  actors. 
It  was  as  though  he  staged  a  drama  and  then  sat  in 
a  box  and  criticized  it.  Goremikine  sat  comfortably 
in  his  chair  and  exclaimed : 

"Eh!  but  this  is  a  horrible  play.  It  bores  me. 
Why  did  I  ever  come  to  see  it?" 

Usually  at  cabinet  councils  he  slept.  In  the  eve- 
nings when  he  should  have  been  hard  at  work  he 
played  solitaire.  The  most  powerful  minister  in 
Eussia  played  solitaire  while  Russia  slid  into  the 
abyss ! 


GENESIS  277 

Once,  however,  Goremikine  showed  a  flash  of  his 
old  self.  After  Austria  sent  the  ultimatum  to  Ser- 
bia and  mobilized,  Goremikine  called  a  meeting  of 
the  Cabinet.  He  told  the  ministers  that  they  must 
make  up  their  minds  to  the  course  Russia  must  pur- 
sue if  Germany  and  Austria  were  determined  on 
war.  A  hot  discussion  followed  and  Goremikine 
seemingly  went  to  sleep.  One  minister  after  the 
other  spoke  and  the  majority  were  in  favour  of  com- 
ing to  some  understanding  with  Austria  and  Ger- 
many if  possible.  Suddenly  Goremikine  opened  his 
eyes  and  said : 

4 'Well,  gentlemen,  I  have  heard  all  you  have  to  say 
and  will  tell  the  Emperor  that  you  have  unanimously 
decided  we  must  stand  by  Serbia  to  the  end."  And 
he  added  fiercely  yet  with  great  dignity,  as  if  to  re- 
mind the  Council  that  it  had  forgotten  something: 
"Our  honour  is  at  stake." 

He  then  went  to  the  Emperor  and  suggested  that 
everything  possible  must  be  done  to  preserve  peace, 
and  as  a  result  Sazonoff,  the  Foreign  Minister,  sent 
a  circular  telegram  to  our  ambassadors  in  Paris, 
London  and  Berlin,  asking  for  the  friendly  inter- 
vention of  those  powers  between  Russia  and  Aus- 
tria. The  Emperor  Nicholas  sent  a  personal  tele- 
gram to  the  Emperor  "William  suggesting  the  same 
thing.  But  what  happened  is  well  known.  Sir  Ed- 
ward Grey  proposed  a  conference  which  was  ac- 
cepted by  France  and  Russia  but  refused  by  Ger- 


278     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  EUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

many.  Emperor  William,  after  having  prepared 
for  war  for  forty-four  years,  encouraged  Austria  to 
stand  fast.  When  Austria  finally  realized  that  Rus- 
sia  would  not  abandon  Serbia,  Count  Szapary,  her 
ambassador  in  Petrograd,  was  instructed  to  see 
Sazonoff  and  endeavour  to  gain  time.  Meanwhile, 
however,  Russia  had  ordered  the  mobilization  of  ner 
Southern  and  Western  armies  at  Kiev,  Warsaw  and 
Odessa  against  Austria,  in  reply  to  the  mobilization 
of  the  latter.  Despite  the  peaceful  efforts  of  the 
French,  Russian  and  English  cabinets,  the  Emperor 
William,  being  afraid  some  arrangement  might  be 
come  to,  ordered  the  secret  mobilization  of  Germany. 
By  mistake  this  was  disclosed  by  the  Lokal  Anzeiger 
of  Berlin.  The  paper  was  promptly  suppressed  but 
in  Russia  the  secret  was  already  known  and  orders 
were  given  for  general  mobilization.  Immediately 
there  came  from  Berlin  the  German  ultimatum  de- 
manding the  demobilization  of  all  Russian  forces  in 
twelve  hours,  which  was  followed  by  the  declaration 
of  war  against  Russia  and  France. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war  the  Emperor  Nicholas 
desired  to  nominate  himself  Commander-in-Chief  of 
Russia's  troops,  but  Goremikine  insisted  that  the 
Grand  Duke  Nicholas  should  be  appointed  to  the  su- 
preme command.  In  consequence  when  he  came  to 
the  Duma  and  told  the  deputies  what  had  been  done, 
he  was  received  enthusiastically  for  the  first  time  in 
his  official  career. 


GENESIS  279 

Henceforward  Goremikine 's  whole  policy  was  di- 
rected to  making  every  sacrifice  necessary  to  win 
the  war.  He  had  determined  that  on  no  account 
must  there  be  any  patched  up  peace.  He  said  to 
me: 

"If  we  lose  Warsaw,  Petrograd,  and  even  Moscow, 
and  retire  to  the  Volga,  we  must  never  make  peace 
until  militarism  has  been  destroyed." 

But  unfortunately  Goremikine  forgot  that  in  or- 
der to  win  the  war  it  must  be  popular  and  to  be  pop- 
ular the  government  must  be  in  agreement  with  the 
people  especially  in  its  domestic  policies. 

This  was  impossible  as  long  as  the  Emperor  was 
surrounded  by  such  men  as  Rasputin,  Maklakoff  and 
Tchegiowitoff,  and  under  the  entire  influence  of  the 
Empress,  all  of  which  the  people  knew  perfectly  well. 
The  liberal  and  progressive  influences,  which  were 
perfectly  ready  to  assist  the  Government  in  every 
way  possible,  were  regarded  by  this  clique  as  revo- 
lutionary. The  discontent  of  the  people  became  ever 
greater  and  greater  and  yet  when  I  told  Goremikine 
we  were  heading  straight  for  a  revolution,  he  only 
replied: 

"That  is  all  nonsense.  Reform  is  necessary  but 
it  must  come  after  the  war.  As  for  revolution  it  is 
nothing  but  the  dust  on  the  healthy  body  of  Russia. 
When  I  breathe  on  it,  it  will  disappear." 

What  must  have  been  the  thoughts  of  the  old 
statesman,  when,  after  the  Revolution,  seated  in  a 


280     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

motor  car  accompanied  by  soldiers  and  workmen, 
and  spat  upon  by  the  people,  he  was  escorted  hatless 
through  the  streets  of  Petrograd,  with  the  ther- 
mometer thirty  below  zero,  to  the  Fortress  of  St. 
Peter  and  St.  Paul. 

Goremikine's  fall  was  entirely  unexpected  by  him. 
When  the  former  Assistant  Minister  of  the  Interior, 
Beletzky,  who  was  in  close  relationship  with  the 
Court  and  with  Easputin,  informed  him  that  the 
Emperor  had  determined  to  replace  him  with 
Sturmer1  (joremikine.  replied : 

"That  is  impossible.  He  might  ask  for  my  resig- 
nation but  he  never  could  replace  me  with  such  a 
nonentity  as  Sturmer." 

On  the  day  before  his  dismissal  the  Empress  ac- 
tually wrote  to  Madame  Goremikine,  who  showed 
me  the  letter,  which  said  "as  long  as  your  dear  hus- 
band is  at  the  head  of  affairs  we  sleep  soundly.  He 
takes  good  care  of  Russia  and  of  us." 

Such  was  the  despicable  treachery  of  the  Emperor 
and  his  court  to  those  who  served  and  loved  him. 

Goremikine's  end  was  tragic.  Eighty  years  old, 
he  was  assassinated  by  the  Bolsheviki  at  Sotche  in 
the  Caucasus,  with  his  wife  who  was  over  seventy 
and  his  son-in-law,  General  Ovtchinnikoff.  Of  all  the 
ministers  during  the  reign  of  Nicholas,  he  and  Witte 
had  the  greatest  individuality  and  independence. 
He  should  hava  held  the  office  of  Foreign  Minister. 


GENESIS  281 

He  had  the  great  quality  of  resistance  which  none  of 
the  other  ministers  had. 

Count  Witte,  who  was  personally  antagonistic  to 
him,  said  to  me  one  day,  when  the  question  of  the 
nomination  of  Goremikine  as  minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs  was  mooted. 

"  Goremikine  would  make  an  ideal  foreign  min- 
ister and  if  he  comes  into  power,  I  will  try  and  obtain 
from  him  an  ambassadorship  to  Constantinople. 
I  would  like  to  work  with  him." 

One  of  Russia's  greatest  tragedies  was  the  fact 
that  Goremikine  and  Witte  never  united  to  form  a 
party.  They  each  criticized  the  other  instead  of 
uniting  to  criticize  the  government. 

When  he  was  dismissed  Goremikine  might  well 
have  cried  with  Louis  Quatorze  "  Apres  moi  le  de- 
luge." 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE   DELUGE 

When  Stunner  was  appointed  as  his  successor,  the 
Court  and  its  intimates  made  no  ceremony  or  fuss 
about  the  new  President  of  the  Council.  For  the 
most  part  the  Emperor  absented  himself  from  Pet- 
rograd,  and  spent  most  of  his  time  at  Army  Head- 
quarters at  the  front.  To  all  intents  and  purposes 
it  was  the  Empress  who  reigned  and  in  consequence 
Rasputin  became  the  dispenser  of  Russia's  destiny. 

Sturmer  was  a  man  of  his  making.  Rasputin 
treated  him  as  dirt  beneath  his  feet,  and  sent  him  his 
orders  written  on  filthy  scraps  of  paper.  The  ad- 
ministrator of  the  Russo-French  Bank  asked  me  one 
day,  knowing  of  my  friendly  relations  with  Prince 
Obolensky,  Commander  of  Petrograd,  to  intercede 
with  him  in  favour  of  a  Jewess,  a  relative  of  one  of 
the  employes  of  the  Bank,  whom  Obolensky  was  going 
to  expel  from  the  city;  but  he  refused  my  request 
categorically. 

* '  Hair  will  grow  on  my  head  before  I  will  permit 
her  to  stay  in  Petrograd!"  he  exclaimed.  (The 
Prince  was  entirely  bald.) 

I  told  the  unhappy  Jewess  of  the  non-success  of 

282 


THE  DELUGE  283 

my  mission  and  advised  her  to  try  and  see  Rasputin. 
This  she  did.  Rasputin  interested  himself  in  her 
case  and  gave  her  one  of  the  famous  slips  of  soiled 
paper  to  give  Sturmer.  I  was  shown  the  slip  and 
took  a  copy  of  it.  And  this  is  the  message  that  Ras- 
putin sent  to  the  President  of  the  Council ! 

1 ' Dear  Boris  Vladimirovitch, "  (Stunner's  Chris- 
tian name),  "I  send  you  this  woman.  Do  as  she 
wishes. 

"Your  well-wisher, 

"Gregory  Rasputin." 

Sturmer  hastened  to  send  the  necessary  orders 
to  Prince  Obolensky  and  the  Jewess  was  permitted  to 
continue  her  residence  in  the  capital.  On  the  night 
of  the  gala  dinner  given  for  Messieurs  Viviani  and 
Thomas,  who  had  come  to  Petrograd  on  the  occasion 
of  the  25th  Anniversary  of  the  Franco-Russian  Alli- 
ance, I  chanced  to  sit  beside  Prince  Obolensky.  I 
said  to  him: 

"Well,  mon  Prince — I  do  not  see  that  your  hair 
has  grown!" 

The  Prince  did  not  seem  to  relish  my  little  joke ! 

Sturmer  thought  of  nothing  except  of  keeping  his 
own~1position.  He  had  as  his  private  secretary  a 
person  called  Manuiloff — a  man  of  very  shady  repu- 
tation, who  shortly  after,  was  condemned  to  a  year 
in  prison  for  blackmail.     The  secretary 's  duties  lay 


284     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

chiefly  in  keeping  the  minister  informed  of  the  sen- 
timents and  opinions  current  in  political  circles. 
For  this  work  Manuiloff  drew  12,000  roubles  per 
year,  to  say  nothing  of  supplementary  credits  and 
the  sums  of  money  given  to  him.  At  the  same  time, 
— an  excellent  illustration  of  our  regime  in  those 
days — he  drew  6,000  roubles  a  year  from  the  Assist- 
ant-Minister of  the  Interior  to  spy  on  Sturmer! 

Conditions  were  so  bad  that  one  might  well  im- 
agine oneself  transported  to  Constantinople  before 
the  war,  where  the  same  sort  of  agents  served  at  one 
and  the  same  time  the  interests  of  the  Grand  Vizier, 
Kiamil  Pasha,  and  of  Enver  Pasha,  who  was  his 
most  deadly  enemy ! 

Sturmer  was  still  Minister  of  the  Interior  and  in 
that  department  every  one  did  exactly  as  they 
pleased.  The  provincial  governors  had  become  mere 
satraps,  justice  existed  on  paper  only.  Solely  oc- 
cupied with  his  own  affairs,  Sturmer  did  not  even 
take  the  time  or  trouble  to  read  the  official  reports ! 
When  he  finally  vacated  the  ministry  to  become  Min- 
ister of  Foreign  Affairs,  still  keeping  the  presidency 
of  the  Council,  he  was  replaced  by  A.  D.  Protopopoff, 
whose  activities  surpassed  those  of  Sturmer  in  arbi- 
trariness and  glaring  abuse  of  his  office. 

Sturmer  tried  to  get  on  good  terms  with  the  Duma, 
and  as  it  had  been  dissolved  by  Goremikine,  he  at 
once  reconvened  it.  Then  he  influenced  the  Em- 
peror to  visit  the  Duma.     Nicholas  went  and  made 


THE  DELUGE  285 

a  speech.  He  assured  the  deputies  of  his  well- 
wishes,  and  asked  them  to  work  for  the  country's 
good  in  accord  with  their  sovereign  in  the  difficult 
times  through  which  they  were  then  passing.  This 
speech  was  enthusiastically  received,  but  the  deputies 
were  disappointed  in  their  hopes.  The  Emperor  had 
spoken  to  them,  it  is  true,  in  a  very  fatherly  and 
kind  way,  but  he  had  promised  them  nothing!  The 
country  wTanted  a%  responsible  ministry  that  would 
be  answerable  to  the  Duma  for  its  actions,  or  for  at 
least  a  practical  execution  of  the  promises  made  in 
the  Imperial  Manifesto  of  17th  October,  1905 — but 
since,  entirely  forgotten. 

Nicholas  would  not  even  sacrifice  the  iniquitous 
Protopopoff,  Minister  of  the  Interior,  for  them,  al- 
though he  was  universally  hated  in  Russia. 

It  was  then  only  natural  that  after  the  Emperor 
left  the  Duma  violent  speeches  against  the  Govern- 
ment and  criticisms  of  the  ministry  were  heard  on 
every  side.  Two  or  three  days  later  Milioukoff  thun- 
dered from  the  tribune  the  truth  of  the  evils  under 
which  unhappy  Russia  was  groaning  and  suffering. 

Stunner's  cabinet  was  so  wretchedly  constituted 
that  among  all  its  members  there  was  not  one  man 
who  could  answer  Milioukoff 's  terrible  denunciation 
and  charges.  Sturmer  had  recourse  to  the  old 
method  and  proceeded  forthwith  to  the  dissolution  of 
the  Duma,  but  the  deputies,  when  they  returned  to 
their  constituencies,  exposed  the  rottenness  of  the 


286     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

Government  in  great  detail  and  discontent  spread 
fast  and  far. 

In  his  relations  with  the  Court,  Sturmer  was 
fawning  and  servile.  As  he  had  been  Master  of 
Ceremonies  for  many  years,  he  knew  it  in  all  its 
devious  ways.  German  by  birth,  his  father  a  Prot- 
estant by  religion,  Sturmer  posed  as  a  convinced 
Orthodox.  He  visited  all  the  churches  regularly, 
and  assiduously  sought  friends  among  the  highest 
church  dignitaries,  as  he  knew  that  in  so  doing  he 
would  win  the  favours  of  the  Empress,  whom  he  in- 
fluenced by  the  most  insidious  flattery. 

It  would  be  ridiculous  to  speak  of  Sturmer 's  "pol- 
itics" or  "policy,"  as  he  had  neither  one  nor  the 
other.  He  lived  from  day  to  day,  executing  the 
ever-vacillating  wishes  of  the  Czar.  He  signed  any 
treaty  put  before  him,  one  was  as  good  as  another 
to  him  and  the  same  slipshod  way  of  doing  things 
as  had  distinguished  his  administration  at  the  Min- 
istry of  the  Interior,  was  the  rule  in  the  Foreign 
Office.  He  was  always  ready  either  to  bargain 
with  the  deputies,  or  attack  them  virulently.  He 
had  been  accused  by  Milioukoff  before  the  whole 
Duma  of  having  been  a  thief  while  in  power.  Miliou- 
koff stated  that  even  if  he  had  not  himself  stolen, 
which  could  not  be  proved,  it  was  certain  his  wife 
and  sons  were  most  seriously  compromised. 

Milioukoff 's  attack,  however,  was  not  the  real  rea- 
son of  Sturmer 's  fall,  which  was  solely  due  to  the  ca- 


THE  DELUGE  287 

price  of  the  Czar,  or  rather,  of  the  Empress.  As  he 
came  to  power,  so  he  fell  from  it.  Matters  were  so 
rotten  at  Court  that  an  open  attack  on  a  Minister 
by  the  Duma  only  strengthened  his  position  with  the 
sovereigns!  Usually  Imperial  favours  were  a  sure 
reward  for  the  hatred  of  the  deputies!  It  was 
merely  a  coincidence  that  made  Sturmer  the  excep- 
tion. 

The  last  President  of  the  Ministerial  Council  un- 


der Nicholas  II  was  Prince  Golitzin.  His  nomina- 
tion was  unexpected,  not  only  by  the  public  at  large, 
but  even  by  himself.  He  had  been  the  Governor  of 
two  provinces  and  a  Senator,  and  his  last  position 
had  been  that  of  a  Member  of  the  Imperial  Council. 
He  always  voted  with  the  party  of  the  Extreme 
Right.  He  was  seventy-two  years  old  when  he  at- 
tained the  highest  office.  He  was  a  gentleman  in 
every  sense  of  the  term,  loyal  and  honest,  but  totally 
ignorant  of  affairs  of  state.  He  was  the  President  of 
two  societies  for  the  furtherance  of  the  public  wel- 
fare, one  of  which  had  as  its  patron  the  Empress 
Alexandra,  and  the  other  the  Dowager  Empress  Ma- 
rie. Although  the  two  Empresses  did  not  get  on  at 
all  well  together,  and  were  entirely  unlike  in  charac- 
ter, Prince  Golitzin  managed  to  retain  the  favour  of 
both.  He  came  to  the  palace  to  make  his  report  to 
the  Empress  one  day,  when  he  found  himself  unex- 
pectedly face  to  face  with  the  Emperor,  who  promptly 
offered  him  Sturmer 's  position  as  head  of  the  Coun- 


288     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

cil !  The  Prince  confided  to  my  sister  Sementovska, 
that  he  had  done  all  he  conld  to  keep  this  bitter  cup 
from  his  lips!  He  did  not  feel  strong  enough  to 
assume  such  a  heavy  responsibility  and  did  not  hide 
this  from  the  Emperor,  giving  him  a  long  list  of 
candidates  for  the  position,  whom  he  thought  to  be 
far  better  fitted.  But  it  was  all  in  vain.  The  Em- 
peror insisted,  and  the  Prince  became  President  of 
the  Council. 

In  political  circles  every  one  was  highly  amused 
by  his  appointment  and  the  Prince  was  not  taken 
at  all  seriously.  The  Duma  expected  an  uproar  the 
first  time  Prince  Golitzin  appeared,  especially  as  he 
relied  on  the  infamous  Protopopoff's  assistance. 
But  the  Prince  dared  not  attempt  the  experience! 
He  kept  away  from  the  Duma,  and  in  this  way  the 
deputies  had  no  idea  of  the  policy  he  intended  to 
follow. 

The  Golitzin  Ministry  lasted  just  one  month.  By 
order  of  the  Emperor,  who  was  then  at  the  front, 
the  Prime  Minister  signed  a  decree  of  dissolution. 
The  Duma  refused  to  be  dissolved  and  the  Revolu- 
tion broke  out! 

The  unfortunate  Prince  left  his  official  quarters 
and  took  refuge  in  my  sister's  house  where  he  lived 
before  he  became  Prime  Minister.  But  as  the  other 
tenants  very  much  feared  the  mobs,  they  begged  my 
sister  to  make  him  leave.  Prince  Golitzin,  a  gentle- 
man always,  immediately  telephoned  to  the  President 


THE  DELUGE  289 

of  the  Duma  to  come  and  arrest  him.  He  was  at  once 
incarcerated  in  the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St. 
Paul,  but  was  soon  freed.  Of  all  the  Czar's  minis- 
ters, he  was  perhaps  one  who  suffered  most  from 
his  master's  capricious  whims. 

Meanwhile  Protopopoff,  the  Minister  of  the  In- 
terior, who  played  such  a  disastrous  part  during 
the  last  days  of  the  monarchy  in  Russia,  flitted 
on  and  off  the  stage.  Just  before  the  curtain  de- 
scended he  became  one  of  the  principal  actors  in  the 
drama. 

In  all  countries  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  oc- 
cupies a  very  important  position.  In  Russia  the 
holder  of  this  portfolio  has  always  been  almost  om- 
nipotent !  The  whole  administration  of  the  internal 
affairs  of  the  vast  Empire  was  absolutely  in  his 
hands.  He  appointed  the  governors  of  provinces, 
and  controlled  the  activities  of  the  Zemstvos.  He 
regulated  all  questions  except  those  of  religion.  By 
custom,  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  was  a  high  dig- 
nitary, having  the  full  confidence  of  the  Sovereign, 
and  being  "his  man,"  in  every  way.  During  the 
reign  of  Nicholas  II,  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior 
especially  reflected  the  vacillating  character  of  the 
ruler.  And  it  was  in  this  important  branch  of  the 
government  that  ministers  were  most  frequently 
changed,  -so. much— so— that  during  the  last  months 
of  the  monarchy,  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  was 
nothing  but  a  continuous  moving  pietui^I — The-Em- 


290     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  EUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

peror  called  for  some  one,  it  did  not  matter  whom, 
and  offered  him  the  post  of  Minister  of  the  Interior. 
The  gentleman  so  "honoured"  accepted,  and  went 
home,  highly  delighted,  to  dilate  on  his  good  for- 
tune to  his  family !  This  would  happen  in  the  morn- 
ing; and  the  evening  of  the  same  day  the  Czar 
changed  his  mind,  another  man  was  appointed,  and 
the  appointee  of  the  morning  had  not  even  had  time 
to  make  the  acquaintance  of  his  colleagues. 

The  innumerable  Ministers  of  the  Interior  kept 
their  positions  not  by  their  policies  or  accomplish- 
ments, but  solely  by  Imperial  favour!  They  all 
tried  to  secure  such  favour  by  all  sorts  of  means, 
any  means  sufficed,  as  long  as  they  were  successful. 
Some,  Sturmer,  for  instance,  by  making  a  round  of 
all  the  churches ;  others,  like  Maklakoff,  in  imitating 
the  "leap  of  the  amorous  pantheress"  which  made 
the  Empress  and  the  Imperial  children  laugh,  and  a 
third  class  like  Protopopoff,  by  flattering  the  Em- 
press, and  doing  things  they  claimed  were  spiritual- 
istic. And  all  by  first  assuring  themselves  of  being 
in  the  very  good  graces  of  Rasputin. 

Of  all  the  Ministers  of  the  Interior  that  Nicholas 
II  had,  Protopopoff  contributed  the  most  to  the  fall 
of  the  Monarchy.  He  was  a  gentleman  from  the 
Province  of  Simbirsk,  on  the  Volga.  Previously  he 
had  been  an  officer,  but  left  the  army  when  he  was 
still  young.  He  was  very  rich,  an  extensive  land- 
owner, and  was  at  the  head  of  several  industrial 


THE  DELUGE  291 

enterprises.  He  had  worked  in  several  of  the  Zems- 
two  bureaux  and  had  been  elected  chief  of  the  nobil- 
ity in  his  home  province.  He  thus  represented  his 
province  in  the  third  and  fourth  Dumas,  belonging 
to  the  Octobrist  Party.  Finally  he  was  Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  Duma.  His  speeches  were  usually  of  a 
pronouncedly  liberal  character.  An  excellent  ora- 
tor, and  most  insinuating  in  his  manner,  he  made 
himself  very  popular  with  the  deputies,  especially 
by  his  violent  attacks  on  the  Government. 

When  a  delegation  from  the  Duma  visited  the 
capitals  of  our  Allies,  Protopopoff  was  of  the  party. 
As  he  spoke  English,  French  and  Italian  fluently, 
he  spoke  for  the  whole  delegation.  He  produced  an 
exceedingly  good  impression  in  Europe,  and  was 
very  popular  everywhere.  On  his  return  to  Russia 
he  passed  through  Stockholm  with  Count  Olsouiev, 
Member  of  the  Imperial  Council,  who  had  also  been 
a  member  of  the  deputation.  In  the  Swedish  cap- 
ital the  latter  discovered  a  Russian  journalist,  Ko- 
lischko  by  name,  who  lived  there  as  he  would  not 
leave  his  mistress,  who  was  a  German  whom  the  Rus- 
sian Government  had  expelled.  Naturally  enough 
Germany  and  its  affairs  were  among  the  topics  of 
conversation,  and  Count  Olsouiev  expressed  a  desire 
to  see  a  real  German  in  order  to  learn  something  of 
German  sentiments.  Kolischko  offered  his  assist- 
ance, and  at  a  luncheon  at  his  house  introduced  a 
man  by  the  name  of  Warburg  to  the  Count.     War- 


292     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

burg  was  a  German  financier,  a  friend  of  Herr  Ballin, 
and  in  consequence  in  touch  with  the  ideas  of  Em- 
peror William. 

At  the  last  moment  Protopopoff  expressed  a  wish 
to  be  present  at  this  luncheon,  and  so  was  asked. 
Although  the  conversation  did  not  have  any  great 
political  significance,  Protopopoff  was  fatuous 
enough  to  mention  it  to  a  reporter,  adding  that  it 
was  he,  and  not  Olsouiev,  who  had  arranged  for  the 
meeting  with  Warburg. 

The  matter  got  abroad,  and  when  Protopopoff 
reached  Petrograd,  he  found  that  his  position  in  the 
Duma  was  seriously  compromised,  even  in  the  ranks 
of  his  own  Party.  The  President  of  the  Duma, 
M.  W.  Rodzianko,  wrote  him  a  letter  in  which  he 
asked,  in  the  name  of  the  Duma,  to  present  formal 
explanations  regarding  the  Stockholm  incident.  In 
order  to  excuse  himself,  Protopopoff  threw  all  the 
blame  on  Olsouiev ;  but  the  latter  succeeded  in  clear- 
ing himself  and  proved  conclusively  that  Protopopoff 
was  a  liar. 

He  had  formerly  been  the  Liberal  candidate  for 
the  post  of  Minister  of  Commerce,  but  after  this 
incident  there  was  no  doubt  that  not  only  would  he 
lose  his  position  as  Vice-President  of  the  Duma,  but 
even  that  of  being  a  deputy ! 

Protopopoff  was  more  fortunate  at  Court. 
Wanting  to  know  the  details  of  the  visit  of  the  dele- 
gation to  the  Allied  capitals,  the  Emperor  received 


THE  DELUGE  293 

him  in  the  Empress'  presence.  Protopopoff  made 
a  very  good  impression. 

The  Empress  asked  him  if  King  George  resembled 
the  Emperor  as  much  as  it  was  commonly  reported. 
Protopopoff  answered: 

"Only  as  a  bad  copy  resembles  a  superb  original." 

This  reply  pleased  the  Emperor  and  Empress  im- 
mensely. 

Seeing  that  he  was  done  for  as  far  as  the  Duma 
was  concerned,  Protopopoff  decided  to  make  himself 
popular  at  Court.  He  listened  to  Easputin  and 
made  himself  most  agreeable,  and  employed  the 
same  tactics  with  the  Archbishop  of  Petrograd.  As 
he  had  prepared  the  ground  carefully  at  the  Palace, 
he  was  appointed  Minister  of  the  Interior. 

At  first  he  played  up  to  the  Liberals.  He  argued 
to  himself  that  the  title  of  "Minister  of  the  In- 
terior, and  Deputy  of  the  Duma,"  would  make  him 
popular  with  the  masses,  and  that  it  might  win  him 
once  again  the  support  of  the  Duma.  But  his  cal- 
culations were  wrong!  His  own  Party  voted  for 
his  exclusion! 

While  Protopopoff  was  still  Vice-President  of  the 
Duma,  he  had  founded  a  newspaper.  "When  he  was 
appointed  Minister  of  the  Interior  he  declared  he 
would  have  nothing  more  to  do  with  this  publica- 
tion, but  he  nevertheless  relied  on  it  for  support,  and 
as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  editor  came  to  his  study  every 
morning  in  secret  to  receive  his  orders.    But  the 


294     KECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

truth  leaked  out  and  in  consequence  the  paper  en- 
tirely lost  its  influence  and  was  unable  to  popularize 
the  Minister. 

The  whole  of  Russia  was  hostile  towards  him  and 
the  press  clamoured  unanimously  for  his  resigna- 
tion. He  did  not  dare  go  to  the  Duma,  being  sure 
of  provoking  a  scandal  were  he  to  do  so.  He  sought 
refuge  at  Court,  and  found  it.  The  Empress,  in- 
fluenced by  Rasputin,  was  sure  of  his  loyalty  and 
devotion,  and  he  became  one  of  her  most  intimate 
friends,  spending  whole  evenings  with  her,  the  fa- 
mous Madame  Wiroubova  and  Rasputin.  During 
these  evenings  religion  was  often  a  subject  of  con- 
versation and  the  necessity  of  saving  the  masses 
from  the  pernicious  influence  of  the  Liberals !  Pro- 
topopoff  was  enthusiastic  on  the  latter  point,  even 
if  he  was  bored  by  the  former. 

When  Rasputin  was  assassinated,  public  opinion 
generally  took  it  for  granted  that  Protopopoff  's 
popularity  at  Tsarskoe  Seloe  would  come  to  an  end, 
but  nothing  happened.  Protopopoff  was  stronger 
than  ever.  He  persuaded  the  Empress,  who  was 
then  turning  to  spiritualism,  that  the  spirit  of  Ras- 
putin had  entered  himself,  and  he  spoke  to  her  in 
the  language  of  the  moujiks  (peasants),  clipping  his 
words  and  sentences  in  imitation  of  Rasputin's  pe- 
culiar way  of  speaking. 

When  the  Emperor  expressed  himself  as  much  an- 
noyed with  the  attitude  of  the  Duma,  Protopopoff 


THE  DELUGE  295 

calmed  him,  saying  that  the  Duma  was  not  to  be 
feared.  Finally  he  advised  the  Emperor  to  decree 
its  dissolution  and  the  Duma  was  thus  eliminated. 

Protopopoff  wanted  to  crush  the  revolutionary 
movement,  of  which  lie  was  fully  aware,  and  advised 
the  Emperor  to  use  Dournovo's  method.  Dournovo 
had  crushed  the  previous  revolution  in  Moscow  by 
the  simple  method  of  massacring  the  people!  Pro- 
topopoff therefore  increased  the  number  of  police  in 
Petrograd  by  adding  large  forces  made  up  of  non- 
commissioned officers  of  the  army,  on  whom  he  could 
rely.  By  this  means  the  force  of  police  in  the  capital 
reached  the  total  of  18,000  men.  He  also  ordered 
all  the  cross  streets  to  be  guarded  with  machine  guns 
and  the  roofs  of  all  the  higher  buildings  to  be  simi- 
larly equipped  and  he  explained  his  orders  by  calling 
attention  to  the  possibility  of  a  German  air-raid  on 
the  capital.  His  idea  was  to  force  the  revolution 
into  the  open,  provoke  the  working  classes  and  then 
mow  them  down.  To  achieve  this  object,  he  ordered, 
on  the  23rd  of  February,  1917,  that  no  bread  should 
be  sold  in  those  parts  of  the  city  inhabited  by  the 
workmen  and  the  poor.  On  the  24th  of  February 
there  were  mass  meetings  of  the  starving  crowds 
who  howled  for  bread.  These  meetings  were  easily 
dispersed  by  the  police;  but,  on  the  25th,  the  move- 
ment suddenly  became  revolutionary.  The  garri- 
sons of  Petrograd  were  in  collusion  with  the  people 
and  there  followed  a  massacre  of  the  police.     About 


296     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

5,000  people  were  killed  and  Protopopoff's  "army" 
fled,  or  was  arrested  by  the  revolting  troops.  The 
revolution  had  won  the  day  in  Petrograd! 

Protopopoff  fled  and  took  refuge  in  a  village  near 
the  capital,  but  fearing  to  be  recognized  and  killed, 
four  days  later  he  presented  himself  to  the  Duma. 
Meeting  Kerensky  there  he  said  to  him : 

' '  Excellency,  have  pity  on  me ! " 

To  which  Kerensky  replied: 

"In  the  first  place,  I  am  not  'Excellency'!  As  to 
your  crimes  against  the  nation,  the  people  will  judge 
them. ' ' 

He  was  arrested  and  incarcerated  in  the  fortress 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul.  He  narrowly  escaped  be- 
ing torn  to  pieces  by  the  mobs  while  he  was  being 
taken  there. 

Goremikine  and  Sturmer,  the  one  by  his  inaction, 
the  other  by  his  actions,  played  their  parts  in  the 
last  scene  of  the  drama,  but  it  was  Protopopoff  who 
rung  the  curtain  down. 

Justice  in  the  country  was  administered  in  exactly 
the  same  way  as  the  government.  There  was  noth- 
ing left  at  all  of  the  liberal  institutions  and  reforms 
of  Alexander  II.  The  tribunals  had  lost  their  inde- 
pendence and  were  docile  tools  in  the  hands  of  the 
Government.  All  cases  in  which  members  of  the 
Government,  or  of  the  Court  were  concerned,  were 
promptly  quashed.    Justice  became  a  by-word.    Pol- 


THE  DELUGE  297 

itics  pure  and  simple  controlled  all  the  law  courts 
and  their  decisions. 

Monsieur  Tcheglowitoff,  the  Minister  of  Justice, 
was  without  faith  or  creed.  He  had  been  my  com- 
rade in  school  days,  and  at  school  he  was  called 
"John  Cain."  After  his  graduation  he  posed  as  a 
Liberal,  and  Milioukoff,  in  1905,  wished  to  appoint 
him  Minister  of  Justice  in  a  Constitutional  Cabinet. 

At  that  time  seeing  that  the  Liberal  cause  was  lost, 
Tcheglowitoff  became  a  pillar  of  the  reactionary 


Jvement.  A  few  months  prior  to  the  final  out- 
break, when  he  found  himself  attacked  on  all  sides, 
he  resigned  as  Minister  of  Justice,  but  the  Emperor 
appointed  him  President  of  the  Council  of  State — 
the  highest  official  position  in  Russia. 

As  President  he  concentrated  all  his  attention  on 
preventing  any  and  all  of  the  Liberal  members  of 
the  Council  from  speaking. 

His  name  was  as  much  execrated  by  the  masses  as 
was  that  of  Protopopoff  and  when  he  was  arrested 
after  the  Revolution  by  the  Provisional  Government, 
the  crowds,  even  to  the  children,  spat  on  him  as  he 
was  taken  through  the  streets.  He  was  taken  to 
the  fortress  of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  and  accused  of 
high  treason  against  the  people  of  Russia. 

The  Russian  clergy  have  ever  played  a  most  im- 
portant part  in  the  history  of  the  nation.  The 
masses  are  extremely  religious  and  in  consequence 


298     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

the  priests  have  very  great  influence  over  them. 
The  church  was  always  regarded  with  reverence  and 
was  a  power  every  sovereign  relied  upon  for  sup- 
port. The  assistance  of  the  clergy  was  therefore 
cultivated.  In  the  last  years  of  the  monarchy 
princes  of  the  church  were  appointed  from  among 
those  on  whom  the  Court  could  rely,  but  as  all  these 
appointments  were  made  through  the  influence  of 
Rasputin,  the  appointees  were  naturally  men  of  evil 
reputation,  without  any  morality.  Morality  was  re- 
placed by  a  fawning  servility.  A  monk  who  had 
been  a  friend  of  Rasputin's  at  Tobolsk,  wholly  ignor- 
ant and  scarcely  able  to  write  his  own  name — was 
made  an  Archbishop,  and  Pitirim,  well  known  for  his 
depraved  habits,  was  placed  at  the  head  of  the  Pet- 
rograd  clergy  as  "The  Metropolitan."  The  assist- 
ance of  such  characters  was  really  of  no  earthly  use 
to  the  Court,  as  the  people,  knowing  their  reputations 
and  habits  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  them.  As 
a  result  the  church  lost  its  influence.  In  the  end 
Pitirim  lost  his  position,  became  again  a  monk,  and 
was  imprisoned  in  a  monastery  situated  in  the  far 
north  of  Russia. 

In  the  army  discontent  with  the  regime  of  Nicholas 
II  had  become  general.  At  the  beginning  of  the  war 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  troops  was  undoubted.  The 
first  military  reverses  in  East  Prussia  in  no  way 
dispirited  the  army.  They  were  fully  offset  by  Gen- 
eral  Brusiloff's   victories    in   Galicia,   which   were 


THE  DELUGE  299 

crowned  by  the  taking  of  Lemberg,  and  Przemysl, 
the  great  Austrian  fortress.  Even  when  the  Army 
suffered  badly  for  want  of  munitions  its  morale  kept 
up  to  a  fine  standard.  Having  no  more  cartridges, 
the  men  fought  with  stones  and  the  butts  of  their 
rifles.  But  as  time  went  by,  and  no  munitions  were 
supplied  the  Army  was  forced  to  a  permanent  re- 
treat. Even  while  Russian  fortresses  were  falling 
one  by  one,  and  the  Germans  were  overrunning  more 
and  more  territory,  the  Army  still  had  confidence  in 
the  future. 

It  was  only  when  it  learned  of  the  treachery  of 
the  Minister  of  War — General  Soukhomlinoff,  and  of 
his  imprisonment,  that  discontent  grew  apace  in  all 
ranks.  The  officers  especially  did  not  attempt  to 
hide  their  disgust.  In  the  casinos  and  restaurants 
there  was  severe  criticism  on  all  sides  against  the 
Government.  The  Emperor  himself  was  not  spared, 
and  no  blame  was  too  great  for  the  Empress  because 
the  military  saw  in  her  the  chief  cause  of  its  dis- 
asters. The  Imperial  Guard  was  no  exception  to 
this  bitter  sentiment.  I  talked  very  often  with  offi- 
cers of  the  First  Regiments  of  the  Guard,  and  they 
frankly  told  me  that  if  the  Emperor  did  not  change 
his  policy  soon,  if  he  did  not  replace  the  inefficient 
and  traitorous  ministers  by  a  cabinet  which  would 
be  responsible  to  the  Duma,  he  would  have  to  be  de- 
throned and  a  regency  instituted.  These  sugges- 
tions and  many  similar  ones,  were  known  to  the 


300     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

men  of  the  rank  and  file,  and  the  Emperor  gradually 
lost  not  only  their  respect,  but  such  little  popularity 
as  he  had  had. 

But  in  the  ranks  the  non-success  of  our  armies  was 
credited  not  only  to  the  Emperor,  but  to  the  higher 
Russian  command.  Generals  were  accused  of  indo- 
lence and  inefficiency,  or  servility  to  the  Emperor, 
and  the  officers  were  accused  of  being  the  generals' 
accomplices.  This  sentiment  explains  the  soldiers' 
fury  against  the  generals  and  officers  during  the 
Revolution,  and  why  so  many  of  them  were  mas- 
sacred. 

In  the  last  months  before  the  revolution,  the  lack 
of  food  supplies  and  of  warm  clothing  fanned  the 
flames.  This  was  attributed  and  not  without  rea- 
son, to  the  corruption  of  the  departments  which  were 
supposed  to  supply  the  army  with  its  requirements. 
Desertion  became  rife,  despite  the  iron  discipline 
which  still  existed  in  the  ranks. 

Thus  from  the  political,  judicial,  clerical  and  mili- 
tary point  of  view  things  were  going  from  bad  to 
worse.  Meanwhile  society  was  divided  into  two 
camps.  In  the  one  camp  no  one  cared  anything 
about  either  the  army  or  the  war.  They  thought 
only  of  enriching  themselves  and  to  them  the  slack- 
ness of  the  administration  was  of  great  assistance. 
The  army  contractors  filled  their  pockets.  Dealings 
on  the  stock  market  attained  enormous  and  un- 
precedented figures,  yet  the  nation  was  starving  to 


THE  DELUGE  301 

death  and  the  army  lacked  everything.  A  third  of 
European  Russia  was  held  by  the  enemy,  and  still 
all  values  on  the  stock  exchange  rose  steadily,  thanks 
to  the  speculation  that  went  on  in  high  financial  cir- 
cles. Men  who  were  penniless  one  day  were  mil- 
lionaires the  next!  Bakery  shops  were  repeatedly 
attacked  by  the  hungry  masses,  whose  long  bread 
lines  stretched  for  hundreds  of  yards  in  many  parts 
of  the  city.  And  while  this  state  of  things  existed 
the  jewellers'  establishments  were  worked  harder 
than  they  ever  had  been  before.  One  of  these,  the 
famous  Faberge,  told  me  that  his  profits  had  trebled. 
He  added  that  the  buyers  were  all  unknown  to  him, 
and  they  cared  nothing  for  the  quality  of  the  things 
they  bought,  insisting  only  on  high  prices.  The 
theatres  and  cafe  concerts  were  always  crowded. 
Four  and  five  hundred  roubles  were  paid  for  a  box 
at  Red  Cross  entertainments.  Wine  was  officially 
forbidden,  but  this  did  not  prevent  champagne  from 
flowing  in  streams  in  private  houses  and  in  private 
dining-rooms,  despite  the  fact  that  its  price  was 
ninety  roubles  per  bottle. 

In  this  world  of  people,  gone  absolutely  pleasure 
mad,  and  literally  drunk  with  money,  Rasputin  was 
everywhere,  in  the  character  of  Principal  Devil,  for 
it  was  he  who  made  it  possible  for  these  floods  of 
money  to  get  into  the  pockets  of  the  vulturous  crowds 
of  pleasure-seeking  leeches.  The  dangers  of  the  sit- 
uation were  well  known.     The  majority  well  knew 


302     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

they  were  dancing  on  the  crumbling  edges_i)l  a  vol- 
cano; but  so  much  the  more  haste  was  made  to 
bleed  suffering,  starving,  agonizing  Russia  to  a  still 
greater  degree,  and  with  the  results  enjoy  life  the 
more! 

And  it  was  on  this  class  of  people  the  ministers 
relied,  and  it  was  among  them  that  the  Government 
looked  for  salvation! 

In  the  other  camp  of  society,  which  was  the  more 
numerous,  the  certainty  of  the  great  catastrophe's 
approach  was  well  known,  and  also  that  the  crisis 
could  not  be  long  delayed. 

The  Emperor  was  now  openly  criticized  on  street 
corners,  and  the  Empress  loudly  cursed.  I  was  with 
the  Assistant  Minister  of  Justice  in  his  study  one 
day,  who  up  to  that  time  had  been  looked  upon  as  a 
reactionary.  There  were  present  two  senators,  one 
of  whom  had  been  Chief  of  the  Police.  Their  con- 
versation was  such  that  had  I  closed  my  eyes  I 
should  have  believed  myself  to  be  in  the  presence 
of  three  convinced,  out-and-out  Revolutionaries! 

Among  the  legal  profession  sentiment  was  even 
more  bitter.  Kerensky,  who  was  a  lawyer,  hurried 
to  the  President  of  the  Lawyers '  Club  one  day  very 
pale,  and  with  tears  in  his  eyes,  asked  him  if  some 
violent  action  had  not  better  be  taken  in  order  to 
save  the  people  and  the  army! 

The  members  of  the  Duma  met  every  day  in  party 
caucus.     They  were  absolutely  convinced  that  the 


THE  DELUGE  303 

state  of  things  could  not  last  any  longer.  But  while 
the  better  thinking  element  of  society  limited  it- 
self to  criticism,  and  tried  to  deliberate  as  to  what 
was  best  to  be  done,  the  workmen  were  organizing. 
The  intellectuals  lost  ground  in  their  endless  delib- 
erations and  the  workmen  became  complete  masters 
of  the  situation. 

The  press  played  only  a  very  small  part  in  the 
crisis.  The  Liberals  had  been  muzzled.  Those  sup- 
porting the  party  of  the  Right,  subsidized  by  the 
Government,  had  no  readers,  and  in  consequence  no 
sales.  Furthermore  Russia  had  no  great  journal- 
ists at  the  time.  The  Katkoffs,  Aksakoffs,  and  the 
Souvorines  had  vanished  and  no  one  to  fill  their 
illustrious  places  could  be  found. 

The  Novoie  Vremya  was  run  by  the  sons  of  the 
great  Souvorine.  One  of  them,  of  no  use  whatso- 
ever, spent  his  time  with  women.  The  other,  a  man 
of  talent,  took  to  drink.  Lacking  in  funds,  the 
Souvorines  sold  a  large  part  of  their  shares  which 
passed  into  the  hands  of  a  Jewish  banker,  Rubin- 
stein by  name.  He  had  made  a  very  large  fortune, 
was  an  intimate  of  Rasputin's  and  thus  became 
quasi-editor-in-chief  of  the  Novoie  Vremya! 

The  other  papers  were  colourless  and  weak,  with 
the  exception  of  the  Retch,  the  organ  of  Milioukoff". 
But  the  military  censorship,  which  had  become  a 
purely  political  affair,  dependent  on  the  desires  of 
the  Minister  of  the  Interior,  heavily  blue-pencilled  all 


304     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

articles  intended  for  publication  by  the  papers. 
Usually  a  blank  space  met  the  readers'  eyes  when 
they  looked  for  an  editorial.  In  revenge  the  papers 
made  much  of  the  complaints  of  the  various  parties, 
despite  the  efforts  of  the  police,  and  this  method  of 
internal  warfare  spread  to  the  people,  and  thence  to 
the  trenches,  increasing  the  general  distrust  and  dis- 
content. 

The  President  of  the  Duma,  Eodzianko,  on  two 
occasions  had  tried  to  show  the  Emperor  the  dan- 
gers which  menaced  the  Nation,  but  his  efforts  were 
all  in  vain.  Nicholas  II,  guided  by  Protopopoff, 
plunged  on  to  the  doom  which  grimly  awaited  him. 

The  peasants  who  make  up  eighty-five  per  cent, 
of  the  population  of  Russia  thought  differently  from 
the  workmen  in  the  cities.  Their  living  had  never 
been  so  good  as  during  the  war !  Three  factors  com- 
bined to  enrich  the  country  people : 

(1)  Each  family  having  a  soldier  in  the  ranks 
received  a  certain  sum  of  money  each  month. 

(2)  Produce  was  sold  at  very  high  prices,  and 

(3)  As  alcohol  was  forbidden,  the  earnings  of  the 
men  of  the  family  stayed  in  the  family. 

From  these  things  it  is  true  that  among  the  peas- 
ants peace  and  content  resulted.  But  also  immor- 
ality rapidly  increased.  Many  women  thought  of 
nothing  but  money,  and  almost  always  the  husband 
being  away,  his  place  was  taken  by  a  prisoner  of 
war.    This  was  often  the  case  even  in  Society ! 


THE  DELUGE  305 

The  peasant,  however,  finally  made  common  cause 
with  the  revolution,  because  always  the  aspirations 
of  the  country  people  were  for  an  increase  in  their 
holdings  of  land.  The  revolutionaries  had  incul- 
cated in  the  peasant  mind  that  these  aspirations 
could  only  be  satisfied  by  a  Revolution,  and  grad- 
ually the  creed  of  the  peasants  became:  Land  and 
Liberty. 

When  the  Revolution  broke  out  the  peasants 
thought  that  their  time  had  come.  They  seized  the 
landlords'  properties  without  waiting  for  any  legal 
arrangement  to  be  made  by  the  Revolutionary  Gov- 
ernment! Uneducated  and  savage,  the  peasants 
burned  and  destroyed  secular  property,  tearing 
down  libraries  and  ruining  treasures  which  had  been 
gathered  little  by  little  by  their  owners. 

This  movement,  and  these  actions,  however,  had 
nothing  to  do  with  socialistic  theories.  The  peas- 
ant, who  had  become  a  landed  proprietor  since  the 
days  of  Stolypin,  does  not  rally  to  a  doctrine  which 
denies  the  rights  of  property!  Having  received 
what  they  demanded,  an  increase  of  their  territorial 
holdings,  the  Russian  peasants  will  necessarily  again 
become  a  conservative  element.  Already  in  the  first 
months  of  the  revolution  the  peasant  was  very  far 
from  sharing  the  advanced  ideas  of  the  workmen 
in  the  cities. 

The  conditions  and  factors  prevailing  in  Russia 
in  the  third  year  of  the  Great  War,  which  were  the 


306     RECOLLECTIONS  OF  A  RUSSIAN  DIPLOMAT 

direct  cause  of  the  downfall  of  the  Monarchy,  can 
be  thus  summarized : 

An  unpopular  Emperor,  lacking  in  willpower. 

An  Empress  who  was  cordially  detested. 

The  Grand  Dukes  and  the  Court  suspected. 

A  discontented  and  deceived  Army  and  Navy, 
which  had  lost  all  faith  in  their  Generals,  Admirals 
and  Officers. 

Venal  and  incapable  Ministers. 

Satraps  in  the  position  of  Provincial  Governors. 

Administrative  abuses  which  increased  daily. 

Justice  all  over  the  land  reduced  to  a  farce. 

An  unconsidered  and  despised  Clergy. 

A  Society  corrupt  and  rotten  to  the  core. 

The  Duma  and  its  Leaders  lacking  in  courage  and 
initiative. 

The  workmen  won  over  by  the  Socialists. 

The  peasants  having  lost  all  idea  of  morality,  pil- 
laging and  destroying  property. 

Add  to  these  the  constant  military  disasters  and 
the  large  part  of  Russia  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy 
and  you  have  an  exact  picture  of  unhappy  Russia 
prior  to  the  Revolution  of  February  25th,  1917. 

Such  was  the  drama  and  such  were  the  principal 
actors  in  it. 

The  curtain  is  down !  the  house  silent  and  deserted ! 


APPENDIX  I 

QUEEN    MARIE    OF    ROUMANIA 


.  ( 


I  will  sooner  abdicate  than  recognize  a  peace 
shameful  to  my  country,"  cried  the  Queen  of  Rou- 
mania,  on  learning  the  terrible  peace  conditions  dic- 
tated by  the  Emperor  William  and  his  partner  Aus- 
tria, and  imposed  on  the  poor  little  Danubian  King- 
dom, crushed  by  superior  force  after  an  heroic  re- 
sistance. 

The  Sovereign  reveals  herself  in  her  cry  of  in- 
dignation, straight  from  the  heart.  In  these  mo- 
ments of  anguish  she  shows  herself  as  she  is — noble 
and  proud,  worthy  of  her  people,  and  worthy  niece 
of  two  great  sovereigns,  Edward  VII  of  England 
and  Alexander  III  of  Russia. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Queen  Marie  is  the 
daughter  of  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh,  brother  of  Ed- 
ward VII,  and  of  the  Grand  Duchess  Marie  of  Rus- 
sia, only  sister  of  the  Emperor  Alexander  III. 

1 'I  belong  to  a  truly  international  family,"  said 
the  Queen  to  me  one  day,  referring  to  the  fact  that 
her  father  was  English,  her  mother  Russian,  and  of 
her  sisters,  one  was  married  to  a  Russian,  the  Grand 
Duke  Cyril,  the  second  to  a  German,  the  Prince  of 

307 


308  APPENDICES 

Hohenlohe  Lauenburg,  and  the  third  to  a  prince  of 
Spain. 

My  first  opportunity  of  getting  to  know  the  Queen 
of  Roumania  was  when  she  was  a  princess  of  Eng- 
land, towards  the  end  of  the  year  1892  in  Munich. 
I  was  Second  Secretary  of  the  Russian  Legation  in 
that  city.  The  Countess  Osten-Sacken,  the  wife  of 
my  chief,  was  an  intimate  friend  of  the  Grand 
Duchess  Marie,  mother  of  the  future  Queen  of  Rou- 
mania.  This  lady  confided  to  her  all  the  difficulties 
she  had  with  regard  to  the  approaching  marriage  of 
her  daughter. 

"Imagine,"  she  said,  "Marie  has  got  two  suitors 
at  the  same  time,  both  desperately  in  love  with  her, 
the  Grand  Duke  George  of  Russia  and  Prince  Ferdi- 
nand of  Roumania,  the  former  is  here,  and  Ferdi- 
nand is  expected  in  a  few  days.  I  don't  know  what 
to  do.  It  seems  to  me  that  my  daughter  prefers  the 
Roumanian,  but  it  hurts  her  very  much  to  disappoint 
the  Grand  Duke.     She  is  so  kind-hearted ! " 

However,  the  Princess  made  light  of  her  mother's 
difficulties  and  decided  matters  for  herself.  In  Jan- 
uary, 1893,  she  married  the  heir  to  the  throne  of 
Roumania. 

Endowed  with  exceptional  beauty,  only  equalled 
by  the  goodness  of  her  heart,  she  became  at  once 
the  idol  of  her  people.  Her  personality  captivated 
every  one.  The  highest  and  lowest  were  equally 
amenable   to   her   great   charm.     Her   uncle,   King 


APPENDICES  309 

Charles  of  Roumania,  compared  her  to  a  ray  of  sun- 
light, notwithstanding  his  pronounced  sympathies 
for  Germany  which  were  so  opposed  to  those  of  his 
niece. 

In  June,  1914,  I  again  met  the  Princess  Marie. 
She  was  still  the  Princess  and  was  present  at  the 
meeting  between  King  Charles  of  Roumania  and  the 
Czar,  at  Constanza.  Wherever  she  appeared,  driv- 
ing, riding  or  walking,  beautiful  as  the  day,  gay, 
smiling  and  waving  her  handkerchief  in  response  to 
the  cheers  of  the  people,  the  enthusiasm  of  the 
crowd  for  their  princess  was  immense. 

The  Princess  little  dreamt  of  the  terrible  trials 
which  awaited  her  in  the  ensuing  three  years. 

I  was  once  more  in  Roumania,  in  Bucharest,  in  the 
summer  of  1916,  about  two  months  before  the  decla- 
ration of  war  by  Roumania.  The  country  was  then 
divided  into  three  political  parties.  The  first,  led 
by  Carp,  former  minister  of  King  Charles,  favoured 
an  alliance  with  the  Central  Powers.  This  party 
was  supported  chiefly  by  conservatives.  Although 
some  of  these  supported  Mr.  Marghiloman,  who  was 
in  favour  of  neutrality.  The  second  party  had  for 
its  leaders  Philippesco,  Take  Ionescu  and  Michel 
Cantacuzene,  who  insisted  on  an  immediate  entry  into 
the  war  on  the  side  of  the  Allies.  The  third  party 
and  the  most  powerful  had  for  its  chief,  M.  Bratiano, 
who  was  then  President  of  the  Council.  He  led  a 
double  game,  emphasizing  his  sympathy  for  the  AJ- 


310  APPENDICES 

lies  and  at  the  same  time  concluding  a  commercial 
treaty  with  Germany  and  Austria-Hungary. 

As  to  the  King,  he  hesitated.  His  original,  all  his 
youthful  sympathies,  drew  him  towards  Germany, 
but  he  decided  to  remain  a  really  constitutional  mon- 
arch to  the  end.  He  made  up  his  mind  only  to  follow 
the  wishes  of  the  majority  of  his  people.  Looking 
back  on  all  that  I  saw,  it  seemed  to  me  that  Ferdi- 
nand saw  clearly  how  he  would  have  to  drink  the 
cup  with  its  dregs  one  day,  but  all  that  he  wished 
was  to  postpone  the  evil  hour  as  long  as  possible. 
This  will  explain  the  entire  and  unwavering  support 
he  gave  to  Bratiano's  policy. 

But  from  the  beginning  of  the  crisis,  Queen  Marie 
did  not  hide  her  sympathies.  At  one  moment  dur- 
ing this  my  last  stay  in  Bucharest,  when  the  con- 
clusion of  the  commercial  treaty  with  the  Central 
Powers  seemed  almost  certain,  old  Philippesco  said 
to  me,  "  Luckily  we  have  our  dear  Queen  with  us 
and  with  such  a  faithful  ally  I  have  no  fear  for  the 

future." 

One  day  the  Princess  Cantacuzene,  wife  of  one  of 
the  warmest  partisans  of  the  Allies,  and  intimate 
friend  of  Queen  Marie,  invited  my  wife  and  myself 
to  pass  the  evening  with  her  and  the  Queen.  Un- 
fortunately I  was  absent,  called  away  to  Reni  on  the 
Danube  by  Admiral  Vesselkine,  commander  of  our 
flotilla,  and  my  wife  alone  was  able  to  take  advan- 
tage of  the  Princess's  amiable  invitation. 


APPENDICES  311 

The  Queen  was  accompanied  by  her  daughter,  the 
Princess  Elizabeth.  A  large  part  of  the  evening  was 
devoted  by  the  Sovereign  to  herself  reading  aloud  a 
small  book  of  hers  entitled,  "The  Heart  of  the  Rou- 
manian Peasant."  This  little  work  was  written  in 
English,  this  and  the  Roumanian  language  being  pre- 
ferred by  the  Queen.  Her  very  soul  is  revealed  by 
this  little  essay.  It  illustrates  her  passionate  love 
for  her  people  and  her  pride  in  being  their  Queen. 
Happy  in  her  great  and  rightly  deserved  popularity, 
she  boasts  how  on  frequent  occasions  she  has  had  to 
accept  the  responsibility  of  figuring  as  godmother  to 
so  many  children  of  humble  peasants.  She  describes 
their  cottages  and  waxes  enthusiastic  over  the  sterl- 
ing qualities  of  the  parents  of  the  newly  born. 

In  the  short  preface,  the  Queen  says,  "The  object 
of  this  little  work  is  to  make  Roumania  as  much  ad- 
mired by  my  readers  as  she  is  loved  by  me."  Al- 
ways and  everywhere  her  strongest  feeling  is  a  real 
devotion  to  the  country  of  her  adoption. 

Naturally  immediately  on  my  return  to  Bucharest, 
I  deemed  it  my  privilege  to  ask  for  an  audience, 
which  a  few  days  later  was  accorded  me.  Rou- 
mania had  then  declared  war.  When  the  Queen 
received  my  wife  and  myself  in  her  palace  at  Bu- 
charest, it  was  already  completely  transformed  into 
a  hospital.  Her  Majesty,  beautiful  and  charming  as 
ever,  wore  the  dress  of  the  hospital  nurse.  After 
the  usual  exchange  of  greetings  and  courtesies,  the 


312  APPENDICES 

Sovereign  passed  on  to  the  questions  of  the  mo- 
ment, speaking  directly  of  the  war  and  the  Council 
of  Ministers  which  under  the  presidency  of  the  King 
had  decided  on  its  declaration. 

"I  know  what  anxious  moments  the  King  must 
have  passed,"  she  said  to  me.  "And  I  have  a  right 
to  be  proud  of  his  decision."  Her  Majesty  added, 
"I  assure  you  that  I  have  no  hatred  for  the  Ger- 
mans, my  mother  and  my  sister  are  in  Germany, 
but  I  felt  that  the  fate  of  my  country  depended  on 
an  alliance  with  the  enemies  of  Germany  and  Aus- 
tria. The  Germans  evidently  know  the  part  I  have 
played  for  they  do  everything  possible  to  eliminate 
me.  Their  aeroplanes  pursue  me  night  after  night, 
and  I  am  obliged  continually  to  change  my  abode. 
But  all  this  leaves  me  perfectly  calm  and  every  day 
I  say  to  myself,  'What  a  blessing  to  be  Queen  at 
such  a  moment!'  " 

She  did  not  seem  to  have  any  doubts  about  final 
success,  although  she  fully  recognized  the  difficul- 
ties the  Koumanians  would  have  to  overcome. 
"They  are  very  strong,"  she  said  again  and  again, 
in  speaking  of  the  Central  Powers. 

In  bidding  her  adieu,  I  asked  for  a  copy  of  the 
little  book  which  she  had  read  at  the  soiree  of  Coun- 
tess Cantacuzene.  The  Queen  graciously  acceded  to 
my  request  and  the  following  day,  I  received  the  lit- 
tle volume  accompanied  by  her  portrait,  and  signed 


APPENDICES  313 

by  her.     I   remained  another  week  in  Bucharest, 
which  by  then  had  become  a  real  hell. 

The  Germans  and  the  Bulgarians  commenced  a 
bombardment  of  the  poor  "Balkan  Paris"  the  day 
after  the  declaration  of  war.  It  was  a  Sunday. 
The  streets  were  full  of  people  enjoying  the  lovely 
weather,  when  the  first  hostile  aeroplane  appeared. 
The  public  thought  it  was  manoeuvres  of  the  Rou- 
manian aviators.  Half  an  hour  later  the  ambu- 
lances of  the  Red  Cross  destroyed  these  illusions. 
The  Huns  and  their  Allies  chose  for  their  mark  the 
most  frequented  squares  and  places.  Bucharest  was 
more  tried  and  more  punished  than  almost  any  other 
town  that  suffered  an  aerial  bombardment.  In  this 
first  hour,  there  were  three  hundred  and  seventy- 
five  dead  and  wounded,  the  great  majority  being 
women  and  children.  Whole  districts  of  the  city, 
only  a  few  weeks  ago  devoted  to  pleasure,  were  com- 
pletely destroyed.  I  saw  with  my  own  eyes  one 
poor  mother  quite  out  of  her  mind.  Her  four  chil- 
dren had  been  crushed  to  death!  But  the  Germans 
and  the  Bulgarians  did  not  confine  themselves  to 
this  mode  of  destruction.  In  addition  they  dropped 
bombs  containing  packages  of  poisoned  candies. 
The  chemist  (Professor  Cantacouzene)  who  made  an 
analysis,  told  me  that  these  bon-bons  were  filled  with 
diphtheria  microbes  and  typhus  germs.  Placards 
were  immediately  posted  in  the  streets  warning  the 


314  APPENDICES 

people  of  this  unsuspected  danger.  Unfortunately, 
it  was  too  late.  Numbers  of  children  were  already 
victims  of  an  enemy  devoid  of  human  sentiment. 

Imagine  what  terrible  moments  the  poor  Queen 
must  have  passed.  How  she  must  have  suffered, 
she,  so  full  of  motherly  tenderness.  But  she  contin- 
ued bravely  to  do  her  duty  as  sovereign.  Later  at 
Jassy  she  shared  all  the  privations  endured  by  the 
remnants  of  the  army  and  the  crowds  of  fugitives. 
She  refused  the  offer  of  the  Czar,  who  put  at  her 
disposal  a  palace  at  Odessa  or  one  at  Kiev.  "I  will 
not  abandon  my  people  in  distress,"  invariably  was 
her  answer. 

She  struggled  to  the  end,  encouraging  the  King 
to  resist  and  continuing  her  work  of  benevolence. 
When  at  last  the  King,  giving  way  to  the  advice  of 
his  Ministers,  declared  himself  ready  to  sign  a  treaty 
of  peace,  the  Queen  revolted  against  his  decision. 
"Rather  abdicate,"  she  cried  with  her  British  pride. 
This  cry  of  indignation  has  immortalized  her. 

The  name  of  Queen  Marie  of  Roumania  will  figure 
in  all  history  as  that  of  a  real  Queen  and  Patriot. 


APPENDIX  II 

THE   RESULT   OF   ROUMANIA 's   PARTICIPATIONS  IN    THE 

GREAT  WAR 

Bucharest,  Sept.  15th,  1916. 
Confidential  report  of  E.  de  Schelking,  Correspond- 
ent of  Journal  de  La  Bourse  of  Petrograd,  and 
formerly  Secretary  of  the  Russian  Embassy  in 
Berlin.  Transmitted  to  Gen.  Alexiev  and  Bru- 
siloff  and  submitted  to  the  Czar,  Nicholas  II. 

Upon  my  departure  irom  Roumania  after  a  sojourn 
of  three  months,  I  consider  it  necessary  to  sum  up 
my  impressions. 

There  are  two  main  considerations  which  I  would 
bring  to  your  notice : 

(1)  What  was  trie  practical  value  to  Russia  and 
the  Allies  of  Roumania 's  participation  in  the  war? 

(2)  Did  that  value  come  up  to  the  expectations  of 
Russia  considering  the  price  paid  for  the  same? 

Unhappily  on  examining  the  situation  in  detail  I 
am  forced  to  the  conclusion  that  Roumania 's  help 
was  not  of  real  advantage  to  Russia,  and  that  the 
price  paid  for  the  same  was  too  high. 

Our  political  understanding  with  Roumania  ar- 
ranged forgan  adjustment  of  boundaries  which  would 

315 


316  APPENDICES 

have  doubled  her  territory.  Besides  having  prom- 
ised her  the  acquisition  of  Transylvania,  which  is  in- 
habited by  a  very  large  number  of  Roumanians,  we 
promised  Roumania  Bukowina,  including  the  cap- 
ital, Czernowitz,  which  was  twice  drenched  with 
Russian  blood  during  the  war,  and  also  the  Banat, 
including  Torondal,  the  population  of  which  was  ex- 
clusively Serbian.  Thus  in  our  desire  to  secure 
Roumania 's  co-operation,  we  sacrificed  our  blood 
brothers,  the  heroic  Serbians. 

At  the  same  time,  we  gave  rise  to  new  complica- 
tions between  two  Balkan  states,  Roumania  and 
Serbia,  because  the  Serbians  could  never  be  satis- 
fied with  a  situation  which  placed  Serbia  under 
the  menace  of  Roumanian  guns  at  Torondal,  instead 
of  those  of  Austria  at  Semlin.  Such  an  understand- 
ing was  contrary,  in  my  opinion,  to  the  interests  of 
Roumania  herself,  because  the  vital  interests  of  Rou- 
mania were,  under  any  circumstances,  linked  with 
those  of  Serbia,  if  only  it  were  to  give  her  an  outlet 
to  the  Adriatic  by  a  complete  understanding  with 
Serbia.  I  know  positively  that  the  arrangements  for 
the  cession  of  Torondal  created  a  most  painful  im- 
pression in  the  political  circles  of  Serbia.  In  her 
intense  desire  to  help  the  Allies,  Serbia  not  only 
showed  herself  willing  to  sacrifice  part  of  Dalmatia 
to  Italy,  but  had  also  consented  to  give  up  a  portion 
of  Macedonia  to  Bulgaria.  This  last  arrangement 
as  we  know,  was  part  of  a  secret  treaty  made  with 


APPENDICES  317 

Britain,  France,  Russia  and  Italy,  to  which  N.  Pas- 
chitch,  the  Serbian  Premier,  gave  a  broken-hearted 
consent  under  Russian  pressure.  The  Serbian  gov- 
ernment realized  to  the  full  the  immense  value  of 
Italy's  participation  in  the  war  and  the  continued 
neutrality  of  Bulgaria,  if  these  could  be  secured  by 
such  sacrifices. 

So  far  as  Roumania  is  concerned  Serbian  states- 
men knew  perfectly  well  the  military  position  of 
Roumania  and  realized  that  the  cession  of  the  Banat 
and  the  entire  Roumanian  demands  were  not  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  practical  interests  of  the  Allies. 
In  my  opinion  our  great  amiability  towards  Rou- 
mania was  entirely  due  to  the  fact  that  all  the  diplo- 
matic representatives  of  the  Allies  in  Roumania, 
except  Italy,  were  not  au  courant  with  the  true  situa- 
tion. They  had  at  heart  nothing  but  the  advance- 
ment of  their  personal  careers  and  they  blindly  fol- 
lowed the  lead  of  M.  Bratiano,  the  premier  of  Rou- 
mania. Their  sole  object  was  the  participation  of 
Roumania  in  the  war,  regardless  of  consequences. 

The  former  French  minister,  M.  Blondel,  knew 
perfectly  well  that  his  diplomatic  days  were  num- 
bered, but  he  hoped  that  he  would  retain  his  posi- 
tion if  he  were  able  to  bring  about  the  participation 
of  Roumania  in  the  war.  The  Russian  representa- 
tive, Chamberlain  Poklewsky-Kosiell,  found  himself 
in  the  same  position.  For  over  a  year  his  recall  had 
been  decided  upon  and  he  had  only  retained  his  post 


318  APPENDICES 

through  the  direct  support  of  M.  S.  D.  Sazonoff,  the 
Russian  foreign  minister.  He  realized  that  his  feet 
were  not  on  firm  ground  and  that  if  he  were  to  pre- 
serve his  position  he  must  accomplish  something 
spectacular.  The  British  minister,  Sir  F.  Barclay, 
was  not  taken  very  seriously  in  Bucharest.  He  was 
very  intimate  with  Poklewsky-Kosiell  in  Persia,  and 
in  Roumania  he  was  inclined  always  to  follow  the 
Russian's  lead. 

These  three  diplomats  naturally  were  used  by 
Bratiano.  Whatever  concerned  the  prime  minister 's 
official  position  and  also  that  of  the  Ministry  of  War 
which  he  occupied,  was  not  deemed  a  matter  of  con- 
cern to  others.  Bratiano  would  not  brook  any  criti- 
cism or  contradiction  or  even  suggestions  from  out- 
side sources.  He  had  named  as  Vice-Minister  of 
War  his  nephew,  General  Iliesco,  whose  incapacity 
in  all  that  concerned  military  affairs  was  notorious. 
Iliesco,  to  natter  the  vanity  of  Bratiano,  assured  the 
Prime  Minister  that  the  forces  at  the  disposal  of 
Roumania  were  very  much  bigger  than  they  were  in 
reality.  In  his  desire  to  be  master  of  the  situation 
in  Roumania,  Bratiano  worked  to  crush  all  opposi- 
tion and  to  this  end  inveigled  the  Allies'  diplomats 
into  supporting  him.  Our  real  friends,  for  example, 
Messieurs  Philippesco,  Take  Ionescu  and  Michel 
Cantacuzene,  found  themselves  paralysed  by  the 
Russian  understanding  with  Roumania  in  1914.     For 


APPENDICES  319 

by  that  understanding  we  had  made  very  serious 
concessions  to  Roumania,  not  for  her  participation 
in  the  war,  but  only  for  her  neutrality.  The  amour 
propre  of  the  Roumanian  deputies  had  been  flattered 
by  this  understanding  and  the  opposition  lost  ground, 
and  Bratiano  was  consequently  completely  master 
of  the  situation. 

But  if  the  political  understanding  between  Rou- 
mania and  the  Allies  was  bad,  the  military  arrange- 
ments were  even  worse.  It  is  surely  clear  that  the 
principal  front  not  only  for  Roumania  but  especially 
for  Russia  was  the  southern  or  Bulgarian  front. 
During  the  two  years  of  her  neutrality  the  Rou- 
manian people  were  principally  occupied  with  mak- 
ing money.  They  had  been  able  to  sell  all  their 
produce  to  Germany,  Bulgaria,  Austria  and  Turkey. 
The  result  was  that  there  was  no  beef  to  be  ob- 
tained in  Roumania  even  before  the  war  started. 
In  July,  1916,  there  were  already  three  beefless  days 
a  week  and  in  September  there  were  four,  and  it  is 
certain  that  in  a  short  time  there  will  be  no  more 
beef  in  the  country.  There  is  also  no  coal.  Hotels 
and  other  public  places  in  all  the  larger  cities  could 
get  no  coal  in  September.  It  must  be  presumed  that 
Bratiano  allowed  the  export  of  all  these  products  in 
exchange  for  war  materials  from  Germany  and  Aus- 
tria. At  least  in  making  a  new  commercial  treaty 
with  Germany  and  Austria  and  being  asked  by  the 


320  APPENDICES 

Allies  the  reason  for  such  a  treaty  he  made  this  his 
excuse  and  explanation. 

Marghiloman  and  Philippesco  were  two  Rou- 
manian statesmen  strongly  opposed  to  each  other. 
The  former  was  pro-neutral  and  the  latter  pro-ally. 
Marghiloman,  who  at  this  time  was  President  of  the 
Council  of  Ministers  in  Roumania,  felt  very  strongly 
that  Roumania  should  remain  very  strictly  neutral; 
not  the  neutrality  conceived  by  Bratiano  but  a  neu- 
trality w*hich  could  be  respected  by  every  one.  He 
said  that  Roumania  could  not  possibly  digest  Tran- 
sylvania and  that  there  was  danger  of  Roumania 
becoming  part  of  Transylvania.  Out  of  Transylva- 
nia would  arise  in  his  opinion  two  problems,  the 
Agrarian  and  the  Jewish,  the  solving  of  which  would 
prove  most  difficult  in  the  future.  He  added  that 
Roumania  was  not  prepared  for  a  great  war  and  he 
had  no  confidence  in  the  assistance  to  be  received 
from  Russia.  If  Roumania  were  not  to  receive  such 
help  from  Russia  she  would  be  bound  to  lose  a  war 
fought  under  circumstances  which  would  prove  dis- 
astrous. 

Philippesco  disagreed  with  Bratiano 's  policy  for 
two  reasons.  The  first  reason  was  that  he  disliked 
the  double  dealing  of  Bratiano.  Being  a  very  frank 
man  himself  he  wanted  to  deal  openly  with  the  Al- 
lies, not  play  on  two  sides;  a  game  he  deemed  dan- 
gerous. The  second  reason  was  that  he  feared  Bra- 
tiano was  far  too  much  obsessed  by  the  territorial 


APPENDICES  321 

readjustments  of  a  successful  war  and  not  suffi- 
ciently aware  of  the  necessity  of  Russian  help  to 
gain  such  successes.  In  Philippesco's  eyes  the  help 
Roumania  was  to  obtain  from  Russia  was  by  far  the 
most  important  question.     He  said  to  me : — 

"I  have  been  Minister  of  War  and  I  know  the  real 
condition  of  the  Roumanian  army.  We  cannot  win 
such  a  war  without  help  from  Russia  of  at  least 
250,000  men,  as  I  insisted  when  I  was  in  Petrograd. 
Iliesco  is  a  foolish  man  and  flatters  Bratiano.  I  am 
astonished  that  he  should  be  Chief  of  General  Staff 
at  such  a  time  as  this." 

In  consequence  my  opinion  was  that  the  Rouman- 
ians must  defend  the  northern  front, — the  denies 
of  the  Carpathians  offering  excellent  positions, — 
with  as  small  forces  as  possible  and  the  chief  cam- 
paign must  be  made  against  Bulgaria  across  the 
Danube  in  co-operation  with  the  Allied  forces  at 
Saloniki  and  the  Russian  forces  in  Dobrudja.  If 
the  Roumanians  insisted  on  a  campaign  in  Tran- 
sylvania they  would  meet  at  once  with  the  full 
strength  of  the  Central  Empires,  which  would  be  di- 
rected against  them  just  at  a  moment  when  I  knew 
well  that  the  armies  of  General  Brusiloff  in  Buko- 
wina  and  Galicia  could  not  assist  with  a  major  of- 
fensive. I  heard  from  an  unimpeachable  source  that 
Bratiano  believed  that  Bulgaria  would  not  attack 
Roumania  but  would  remain  on  the  defensive.  Bra- 
tiano agreed  that  the  Bulgarians  would  not  fight 


322  APPENDICES 

against  the  Russians,  but  I  know  the  mentality  of 
the  Bulgarians  and  I  was  certain  they  would  take  the 
offensive  against  the  Roumanians  and  fight  willingly 
against  Russia.  In  consequence  I  was  sure  that  the 
campaign  as  planned  by  General  Iliesco  would  lead 
to  disaster.  Unfortunately  this  belief  is  already 
proving  true. 

For  the  defence  of  the  southern  front  only  four 
divisions  were  allowed,  and  of  these  four,  one  line 
division,  the  ninth,  was  at  Turtakai  and  the  three 
others  were  only  mobilized  just  before  war  was  de- 
clared. Russia  sent  into  the  Dobrudja  two  and  a 
half  divisions,  which  were  comprised  chiefly  of  Ser- 
bian forces,  which  had  taken  refuge  in  Roumania 
after  the  advance  of  Mackensen  on  the  north  and 
Bulgaria  on  the  east  had  cut  them  off  from  their 
own  main  armies.  From  Roumania  they  had  been 
sent  to  Odessa  and  were  there  equipped  by  the  Rus- 
sians. These  forces  were  under  the  command  of 
Lieutenant  General  Zaiontchkowsky  and  were  not 
nearly  strong  enough.  But  Bratiano  with  extreme 
fatuity  had  declared  that  Roumania  was  sufficiently 
strong  for  all  purposes.  At  the  same  time  he  asked 
Russia  to  supply  him  with  half  a  million  men.  The 
Russian  Government  pointed  out  that  if  such  large 
forces  were  supplied  it  was  impossible  for  Roumania 
to  acquire  so  much  territory  and  that  in  consequence 
the  treaty  would  have  to  be  revised  and  the  Banat 
at  least  restored  to  Serbia.     Bratiano  thereupon  re- 


APPENDICES  323 

joined  that  Roumania  was  sufficiently  strong.  His 
one  idea  was  to  secure  the  territories  he  had  set  his 
heart  upon. 

Moreover  Bratiano  declared  over  and  over  again 
that  he  was  absolutely  certain  Bulgaria  would  re- 
main on  the  defensive  and  be  unable  to  attack.  He 
was  strongly  supported  by  the  Russian  Military  At- 
tache at  Bucharest,  a  colonel  of  the  general  staff  by 
name  Tatarinoff,  who  before  he  was  appointed  to 
Bucharest  had  been  Military  Attache  at  Sofia  and  in 
consequence  must  have  been  fully  informed  as  to  the 
forces  and  military  intentions  of  Bulgaria. 

The  result  of  these  blunders  was  very  soon  ap- 
parent. Two  days  after  war  was  declared,  Bulga- 
rian, Turkish  and  German  forces  under  Mackensen 
attacked  the  ninth  division  at  Turtukai  and  anni- 
hilated it.  Thus  in  two  days  Roumania  lost  twenty 
thousand  men  of  the  best  troops  on  the  Dobrudja 
front. 

After  this  victory  Mackensen  rapidly  marched 
against  Zaiontchkowsky  who  was  thus  placed  in  a 
very  difficult  position.  The  Roumanian  division 
which  was  attached  to  his  army  was  not  of  the  best 
material  despite  the  assurances  of  Colonel  Tatari- 
noff to  the  contrary.  Not  only  regiments  but  whole 
brigades  broke  and  ran  directly  the  Turkish  shrapnel 
ranged  them,  thus  exposing  Zaiontchkowsky 's  right 
wing  and  forcing  him  to  change  his  front  and  retire. 
For  confirmation  of  this  it  is  only  necessary  to  re- 


324  APPENDICES 

fer  to  Zaiontchkowsky 's  report  to  the  Russian  gen- 
eral staff. 

I  cannot  prophesy  as  to  the  future  but  at  this  mo- 
ment it  is  plain  that  the  whole  responsibility  now 
rests  on  Russia,  and  in  Bucharest  people  are  al- 
ready crying  that  they  have  been  betrayed  by  Rus- 
sia, knowing  of  course  nothing  of  our  military  con- 
vention concluded  with  Bratiano. 

Yesterday  I  had  an  interview  with  Colonel  Ta- 
tarinoff  and  I  cannot  hide  my  astonishment  of  the 
manner  in  which  he  spoke.  He  stated  that  it  was 
necessary  for  Roumania  to  start  the  war  and  "  thank 
God  it  had  been  accomplished."  Hitherto  he  had 
stated  that  two  and  a  half  divisions  from  Russia 
would  be  enough  and  yet  now  he  stated  to  me  that 
Bulgaria  had  a  first  class  army  of  550,000  men  and 
Roumania  could  do  nothing  against  such  an  army. 
He  said  that  to  ensure  the  defeat  of  Bulgaria  it 
would  be  necessary  to  obtain  from  Russia  an  army 
of  500,000  men  at  least  and  no  such  army  under 
present  conditions  was  available.  Therefore  it  will 
be  necessary  to  make  a  small  local  attack  and  at  the 
first  success  propose  terms  of  peace  to  Bulgaria. 
But  he  added  that  at  the  same  time  it  would  be  pos- 
sible to  dethrone  Czar  Ferdinand  of  Bulgaria. 
When  I  replied  to  him  that  such  things  were  quite 
impossible  because  of  our  arrangements  with  both 
Serbia  and  Roumania  he  replied  that  he  was  very 
sorry  but  he  saw  no  other  way  out  of  the  muddle. 


APPENDICES  325 

Meanwhile  our  minister  Poklewsky  appeared  very 
well  satisfied  with  the  way  things  were  going,  al- 
though his  whole  conception  of  the  situation  was 
dictated  by  Bratiano.  For  example  when  I  pointed 
out  to  Poklewsky  that  the  Roumanian  government 
was  not  li ving  up  to  our  agreement  (which  included 
the  provisioning  of  our  troops,  the  proper  supplies 
for  the  Red  Cross  and  adequate  transportation  .  .  . 
we  had  been  promised  twelve  trains  a  day  and  only 
two  had  materialized),  and  suggested  that  if  the 
Roumanian  government  could  not  live  up  to  its 
agreement  the  military  and  political  agreements 
might  be  changed  to  our  mutual  advantage,  he  re- 
plied: 

"I  am  very  sorry.  The  convention  was  signed  not 
only  by  Russia  but  by  Britain,  France  and  Italy  and 
is  obligatory  upon  the  Allies  and  we  cannot  place 
Bratiano  in  a  difficult  position  by  suggesting  such 
changes  now  as  might  affect  his  political  position 
with  the  Roumanian  people  and  thus  destroy  con- 
fidence." 

It  is  thus  plain  that  the  Allies  had  concluded  it 
was  absolutely  necessary  to  support  Bratiano  at  all 
costs. 

At  this  time  Bratiano  completely  lost  his  head. 
The  former  French  minister,  Monsieur  Blondel, 
whose  daughter  was  married  to  the  Roumanian  gov- 
ernor of  Silistria  and  who  lived  in  Bucharest,  told 
me  that  Bratiano  had  entirely  lost  his  self-confidence. 


326  APPENDICES 

In  conversation  with  him  Bratiano  had  declared  that 
the  Allies  had  persuaded  him  against  his  better 
judgment  to  enter  the  war  and  that  therefore  they 
were  to  blame  for  the  situation.  Monsieur  Blondel 
replied  that  this  was  by  no  means  the  case.  The 
Allies  had  never  pushed  matters  but  had  allowed 
Roumania  to  choose  her  own  time  and  had  concluded 
with  Bratiano  himself  all  the  arrangements  he  had 
desired  and  had  been  assured  by  him  that  the  Rou- 
manian army  was  fully  prepared  to  carry  out  the 
conventions  and  was  in  a  very  strong  position. 

Fearing  the  criticism  of  the  opposition  Bratiano 
attempted  to  form  a  coalition  government  and  of- 
fered to  take  into  the  cabinet  M.  Take  Ionescu,  Mi- 
chel Cantacuzene  and  Stelian,  but  refused  to  give 
them  any  responsible  portfolios,  and  in  consequence 
these  statesmen  refused  to  enter  the  government. 
The  question  of  the  change  of  government  was 
placed  before  the  Chamber  of  Deputies  during  the 
next  two  weeks. 

To  summarize : 

1.  Our  political  understanding  with  Roumania 
gave  too  much  to  the  Danubian  Kingdom  and  we  re- 
ceived from  Bratiano  far  too  little  support  and  this 
political  understanding  was  not  in  the  interests  of 
the  Roumanians  themselves  ...  (as  for  instance 
the  question  of  Torandel). 

2.  The  military  convention  was  based  on  a  false 


APPENDICES  327 

principle  in  not  making  the  main  front  to  the  south 
but  to  the  north  on  the  Transylvania  front.  At  this 
moment  this  assertion  is  proved  by  the  fact  that 
the  convention  is  being  automatically  changed.  The 
Koumanians  are  sending  troops  from  the  northern 
front  to  Dobrudja  and  we  have  to  reinforce  this 
front  also. 

3.  The  Allies  had  not  taken  into  proper  considera- 
tion the  military  strength  of  Bulgaria  nor  its  stra- 
tegic plans.  Bulgaria  was  more  or  less  ignored  and 
the  blame  for  this  state  of  affairs  must  be  placed  on 
the  shoulders  of  the  Russian  attache  at  Bucharest, 
Colonel  Tatarinoff. 

The  right  thing  to  do  was  for  the  Allies  to  dis- 
patch large  Russian  forces  through  the  Dobrudja 
towards  Sofia  and  co-operate  with  General  Sarrail  at 
Saloniki.  By  this  means  the  Allies  would  have  been 
able  to  handle  the  Grecian  situation,  dethrone  King 
Constantine  and  joining  forces  with  the  Russians 
and  Greeks  have  crushed  Bulgaria  and  eliminated 
her  from  the  war. 

If  this  cannot  be  done  it  is  possible  to  support  Rou- 
mania  for  a  considerable  period  but  eventually  dis- 
aster is  assured  and  Roumania  will  be  totally  de- 
feated. 

Editor's  Note:  At  the  time  this  report  was  presented  the  Rou- 
manians appeared  to  be  victorious  in  Transylvania  and  had  not  yet 
been  defeated  beyond  the  Rothen  Thurm  pass  and  driven  back  into 
Roumania  by  von   Falkenhayn. 

PEINTKD    IX    THE    UNITED    STATES    OF    AMERICA 


'HE  following  pages  contain   advertisements  of  a  few 
of  the  Macmillan  books  on  kindred  subjects. 


ERNEST    POOLE'S  NEW  BOOK 

The  Village:    Russian  Impressions. 

By  ERNEST  POOLE 

Illustrated.     Cloth,  i2mo. 

This  volume  describes  in  personal  and  narrative  form  Mr. 
Poole's  visit  to  the  small  estate  of  an  old  Russian  friend,  whose 
home  was  a  rough  log  cabin  in  the  North  of  Russia.  From  there 
he  ranged  the  neighborhood  in  company  with  his  friend,  talking 
with  peasants  in  their  huts;  with  the  vagabonds  camped  at  night 
on  the  riverside ;  with  the  man  who  kept  the  village  store ;  with 
the  priest,  the  doctor  and  the  school  teacher,  as  well  as  with  the 
saw-mill  owner. 

Their  views  of  the  war,  the  revolution  and  American  friend- 
ship are  all  of  great  significance  now,  for  the  peasants  form 
nearly  ninety  per  cent,  of  the  Russian  people. 

"The  Dark  People":    Russia's  Crisis. 

By  ERNEST  POOLE. 
Author  of  "  His  Family,"  "  The  Harbor,"  etc. 

Cloth,  izmo.,  $1.50 
"  Too  strange,  too  romantic,  too  imaginative,  to  be  anything 
but  sober  truth.  .  .  .  We  have   read   no  book   which  got  closer 
to  the  heart  ...  of  the  Russian  people." — N.  Y.  Tribune. 

"  A  valuable  book,  .  .  .  sane  and  informative,  .  .  .  shows 
close  study  by  an  impartial  mind." —  N.  Y.  Herald. 

"  We  have  never  read  a  book  more  deeply  thrilling.  It  is  not 
the  book  of  a  dreamer,  but  of  one  whose  vision  is  far  because 
his  heart  beats  for  his  fellowmen.  .  .  ." —  Book  Review. 

"  A  sincere,  unpretentious,  and  strikingly  successful  attempt 
to  get  at  the  mind  and  heart  of  these  people  in  the  midst  of  revo- 
lution."—  N.  Y.  Evening  Post. 

Inside  the  Russian  Revolution 

By  RHETA  CHILDE  DORR 

Illustrated.     Cloth.  $1.50 

"Mrs.  Dorr's  book  is  an  excellent  piece  of  reporting.  It  will 
be  the  exceptional  reader  who  will  not  find  here  what  he  would 
most  like  to  get  from  an  American  visitor  who  has  had  ex- 
ceptional opportunities  to  learn  the  truth.  Her  book  will  have 
to  be  consulted  by  the  future  historian  of  anarchy's  reign  in 
Russia." —  Springfield  Republican. 

"As  a  distinctively  first-hand  study  of  a  world  event  of  il- 
limitable influence  and  implications,  this  volume  is  a  milestone 
along  the  pathway  of  history." — Philadelphia  North  An.erican. 

THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers      64-66  Fifth  Avenue      New  York 


STEPHEN  GRAHAM'S  BOOKS  ON  RUSSIA 
Through  Russian  Central  Asia 

///.,  8vc,  $2.25 

"  Full  of  information  and  charming  as  it  is  informing.  It  is 
rich  in  the  lure  of  the  open  road  ...  in  the  romance  of  old 
cities,  in  the  wildness  of  the  vast  waste  spaces  ...  in  the  view  it 
gives  of  a  phase  of  Russian  life  entirely  new  to  American  read- 
ers."—  N.  Y.  Times. 

A  Tramp's  Sketches 

///.,  8vo,  $1.75 

The  narrative  of  a  walking  trip  through  Russia.  "  A  book 
throbbing  with  life  which  cannot  help  but  prove  of  interest  to 
many  readers.  ...  A  treasury  of  informaticn  ...  a  source  of 
great  inspiration." —  The  Examiner. 

With  the  Russian  Pilgrims  to  Jerusalem 

///.,  8vo,  $3.00 

"  Mr.  Graham  has  written  an  intensely  interesting  book,  one 
that  is  a  delightful  mixture  of  description,  impression,  and  de- 
lineation of  a  peculiar  but  colorful  character." — Book  News 
Monthly. 

With  Poor  Immigrants  to  America 

///.,  8vo,  $2.25 

"  Mr.  Grahan  has  the  sr'rit  of  the  real  adventurer.  .  .  .  He 
writes  with  a  freshness  and  vividness  that  mark  him  a  good 
mixer  with  men,  a  keen  observer  and  a  skillful  adept  with  the 

ien." — North  American. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers      64-66  Fifth  Avenue      New  York 


STEPHEN  GRAHAM'S  BOOKS  ON  RUSSIA 

The  Way  of  Martha  and 
the  Way  of  Mary 

Colored  frontispiece,  $2.2$ 

A  study  of  Russian  national  characteristics,  particularly  as 
typified  by  her  religious  spirit,  which  is  contrasted  with  the 
spirit   of    Western   Christianity. 

Priest  of  the  Ideal 

$1.60 

Mr.  Graham  here  employs  his  vast  knowledge  of  Russian  life 
in  the  writing  of  a  novel.  It  was  inevitable  that  with  his  ap- 
preciation of  Russian  character,  his  sense  of  humor  and  of  the 
dramatic,  he  should  sooner  or  later  turn  to  fiction. 

Russia  and  the  World 

Illustrated,  $2.25 

A  comprehensive  survey  of  Russian  problems,  not  by  any 
means  wholly  a  war  book. 

".  .  .  By  a  man  who  knows  Russia  well  and  who  has  excep- 
tional ability  for  making  his  own  observations  and  impressions 
known  to  others." — New  York  Tribune. 

The  Quest  of  the  Face 

Illustrated,  $1.75 

"A   thoughtful   and   thought-provoking  book With   rare 

spiritual  insight." — N.  Y.  Tribune. 

"  Stephen  Graham  .  .  .  draws  again  and  freely  upon  the  sim- 
plicity of  faith  which  he  has  found  in  Russia."—  N.  Y.  World. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers      64-66  Fifth  Avenue      New  York 


RECENT  TRANSLATIONS  OF  RUSSIAN 
LITERATURE 

THE  TALES  OF  CHEKHOV 
Translated  by  Constance  Garnett 

THE  BISHOP  AND  OTHER  STORIES. 

THE  CHORUS  GIRL  AND  OTHER  STORIES. 

Chekhov  volumes  already  published 

Each  Volume,  Cloth,  i2mo.,  $1.50 
The  Lady  with  the  Dog  The  Duel 

The  Party  The  Wife 

The  Darling  The  Witch 

"  Chekhov  is  indispensable  to  our  understanding  of  the  psy- 
chology of  the  great  people  that  has  introduced  into  the  present 
world  situation  an  element  so  complex,  so  disturbing,  so  tragic 
and  so  beautiful.  Chekhov  is  the  faithful  reporter,  unerring,  in- 
tuitive, direct.  He  never  bears  false  witness.  The  essence  of 
his  art  lies  in  a  fine  restraint,  an  avoidance  of  the  spectacular 
and  sensational.  His  reticence  reveals  the  elusive  and  lights  up 
the  enigmatic.  And  what  a  keen,  voracious  observer  he  was! 
Endless  is  the  procession  of  types  that  passes  through  his  pages 
—  the  whole  world  of  Russians  of  his  day;  country  gentlemen, 
chinovniks,  waitresses,  ladies  of  fashion,  shop  girls,  town  phy- 
sicians, Zemstvo  doctors,  innkeepers,  peasants,  herdsmen,  soldiers, 
tradesmen,  every  type  of  the  intelligentsia,  children,  men  and 
women  of  every  class  and  occupation.  Chekhov  describes  them 
all  with  a  pen  that  knows  no  bias." —  The  Dial. 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers      64-66  Fifth  Avenue      New  York 


RECENT  TRANSLATIONS  OF  RUSSIAN 
LITERATURE 

THE  NOVELS  OF  DOSTOEVSKY 

Translated  by  Constance  Garnett 

Each  Volume,  Cloth,  $1.50,  Leather,  $2.00 

THE  GAMBLER  AND  OTHER  STORIES 
By  FYODOR  DOSTOEVSKY 

This,  the  ninth  volume  in  Constance  Garnett's  new  series  of 
Dostoevsky  stories,  brings  together  three  remarkable  tales  — 
The  Gambler,  Poor  People,  and  The  Landlady.  Each  is  a  mas- 
terpiece of  its  kind,  offering  fresh  proof  of  Dostoevsky's  genius. 
Particular  interest  is  attached,  perhaps,  to  Poor  People,  in  that  it 
was  the  writer's  first  book,  appearing  when  he  was  only  twenty- 
five  years  old.  It  has  always  remained  one  of  his  most  popular. 
"The  secrets  of  the  human  heart  are  laid  bare  here,"  says  Wil- 
liam Lyon  Phelps  of  it ;  maintaining  further  that  "  no  one  can 
read  it  without  being  better  for  it  and  without  loving  its  author." 

Dostoevsky's  novels  already  published 

IN  THIS  SERIES: 

The  Brothers  Karamazov 

Crime  and  Punishment 

The  Eternal  Husband 

The  Gambler  and  Other  Stories 

The  Idiot:     A  Novel  in  Four  Parts 

The  Possessed:     A  Novel  in  Three  Parts 

House  of  the  Dead 

The  Insulted  and  Injured 

A  Raw  Youth 


THE  MACMILLAN  COMPANY 

Publishers      64-66  Fifth  Avenue      New  York 


ts. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 

This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


Form  L9-Series4939 


J?>  s 


%7inNVtf 


— u   I 

A      *^ 

inr  itirri  r« 

ii.  SOUTHER 


IN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


AA    000  709  980    7 


